Pokemon: Azure Light 2: Wrath of Destronix
by BatmanRules256
Summary: After the defeat of Zygarde, Ace, Shadow, Eon and the rest of the legendaries still have their crazy adventures. What will they do next? What happens when a new, more terrifying threat appears? Find out in Azure Light 2. To those of you who read Azure Light,takes place in between that and its sequel, Team Lunar Fire. Gijinka. Reviews are very welcome.
1. Prologue: Final Battle

Prologue: Final Battle

" **You're pretty good, Hunter."** Destronix said, his golden armor glowing as he stood in front of Ace, the latter clutching his arm. **"You really are the one who beat Zygarde. I'm truly impressed that you've managed to survive this long."**

" _Damn it!"_ Ace thought, trying desperately to think of an option he could take. _"He's strong! Even my Nightmare Pokéforme is hard pressed to fight him!"_

" _ **I'm"**_ Ace said, clutching his right arm and panting as his black blood poured onto the ground. His skin was black and his hair white and longer and his eyes red while his red scarf had become like a fire. _**"a lot tougher than you think."**_

" **Funny."** Destronix said, chuckling as he summoned two golden balls of Light to his hands. **"The Gardevoir girl said the same thing about you when I fought her. In fact, those were her final words before I snapped her neck."**

Ace's eyes widened, both out of shock and anger. His expression turned from exhausted to unbelievably pissed off as a large Dark energy sphere appeared in his hands.

" _ **You're going to pay for that!"**_ Ace shouted as his aura skyrocketed, despite his lack of energy earlier. _**"Focus Energy: Level Three!"**_

Ace's body flashed white for about three seconds as the power of Focus Energy poured through his veins, shooting his power level to far higher than he'd ever gone before. He clenched his body as he struggled to maintain the power he was reaching.

" **Ha!"** Destronix said, laughing at the sight of his opponent. **"Your body can't handle that kind of energy! You'll die before you get anywhere near the level that's necessary to beat me."**

" _ **I will stop you!"**_ Ace shouted, lunging toward the Light type synthoid. _**"For Arcey, for all those you've hurt! For SHADOW!"**_

Destronix summoned his own Light energy to fight Ace with. The two met in the middle with a clash of the two polar opposite energies.

 _In reality_

Xerneas sat straight up in her bed, cold sweat having already soaked her sheets and her rainbow colored hair. She clutched her chest where her heart was, trying desperately to slow down her very rapid heart rate.

"What was that?!" she thought, terrified by what she had just dreamt, despite having seen what could be scarier. "They made it?! No! No, it's not possible. It can't be!"

"Oh, but it is." A voice said from beside her, startling the Life Goddess. "And you're going to help bring it about."

"I won't help you!" Xerneas cried, charging up a Moonblast in her hands and firing it at the strange intruder. The intruder swatted the pink orb away and stepped closer to Xerneas, the Life Goddess's eyes widening in fear.

"You think that would kill me?" the intruder asked, his voice cruel and cold. "If Shadow Darkstar couldn't kill me, what makes you think you will?"

That was the last thing Xerneas heard before everything around her went black.

* * *

So, what could this mean for the series? What could i be planning? Who is this Destronix person? And are the others dead? Well, this is a prologue, so that means you'll find out soon. To those of you who read the original Azure Light, great job finishing it. I enjoyed writing that one. This one is a different universe than Team Lunar Fire, but is still a sequel to Azure Light. This one is how i'd actually end this great series. Well, tell me what you think. I love to see what my readers think of my stories and hear some ideas. In fact, without reviewer input, the character of Cressa wouldn't have been introduced (she was an idea given by Allthrustnovector) at all. Well, until next time.

I also removed the previous, much darker chapter because i thought it might convey the wrong idea about how this series will go.


	2. Kyurem Part One: Intro

Chapter One: Kyurem Part One: Intro

So, several of these first few stories are gonna be Christmas themed. TLF and In Dark of Night will still be canon, but they'll be in an alternate universe (yes, I'm still working on them).

The alarm clock went off, blaring in his head. Ace yawned, smashing it with his fist followed by a Dark Ball. He opened his eyes to see a girl with rainbow orange hair and large blue eyes staring him in the face.

Ace jolted up, the girl jumping backwards and falling off the bed, landing on her back.

"Damn it Maura." Ace said, getting up. "How many times do I have to tell you not to stare at me when I'm sleeping?"

"I don't know." Maura said, thinking. "About a hundred."

"Maura, you're thirteen." Ace said, sitting up in bed and getting out of it, putting on his usual garb, a black shirt, black jacket, black pants, black shoes, and his favorite red scarf from Shadow. "You need to stop doing stuff like that."

"I know." Maura said, looking sad.

"At least don't be right in front of my face." Ace said, rubbing the ice type's head comfortingly.

"Okay." Maura said, brightening up instantly. The ice type ran out of the room cheerfully, running to eat.

Ace got out of his bed, walking down the hall to the breakfast table. On the way he passed by the large Christmas tree that Melody and Cressa had felled a few days prior. The legendaries, along with Darkora, Diana, and Cressa, had had tons of fun decorating the tree with lights and ornaments. The pride of the tree, however, was the angel at the top. It held a Staryu that glowed. Mewtwo had cut a hole in the Staryu and cleverly positioned it so that it shone down on a nativity scene that Arcey had had since she was a little girl as a reference to the story of the nativity.

He sat down next to Shadow, Shadow leaning up against him, dressed in her usual white jacket with green jagged shirt that stopped at her midriff, white pants with green spots, and her red, rose petal locket that her mother had given her. Her black hair still had the green highlights she loved so much.

Arcey, noticing that all legendaries (along with Darkora, Cressa, and Diana, who were residents at the Hall, but not official legendaries) were present, stood up and cleared her throat.

"I have an announcement to make." She said, causing every legendary (except May and Sapphire) to groan.

"As you all know" Arcey continued, brushing her white hair out of her face as she was used to it (it had increased a bit since the defeat of Zygarde six months ago). "Our Christmas party is in a week. I hope you all remembered your gifts."

"We already got them." Palkia said, looking at his girlfriend in blue, who chuckled to herself as she thought of her gift.

"Those were the ones for under the tree." Arcey said. "The ones you're getting now are for the party."

"So" Ace asked, trying to understand what his leader was saying. "We have to get more gifts? At this time of year?"

"Yep." Arcey said, causing several people at the table to groan, among them Ace, Shadow, Dialga, Palkia, Ray, Bianca, Darkora, and Melody.

"Well" Arcey said, waving her hands toward the other legendaries. "Get going if you don't have one."

Several of the legendaries ran off toward the door, others teleporting. Ace and Shadow went out into the hallway, Shadow pulling Ace's arm.

"What's up?" Ace asked his girlfriend.

"Um, well." Shadow said, her face turning a little redder as she blushed. "The thing is…that…I—um… well, it's close to Christmas."

"I know" Ace said. "The year's flown by so fast."

"So" Shadow said, her voice quiet. "There's something I wanted to ask you."

"What is it?" Ace asked, confused at Shadow's tone and behavior.

"Hey, tall, Dark, and badass!" came a voice from above. "Look up, will ya?"

Ace looked up to see Eon upside down on the ceiling, dressed in her typical orange jacket and shirt with white pants with orange ring around the thighs and orange boots. In her orange gloved hands was a plant of some kind. Her long orange hair was hanging down due to gravity. Her fiery orange eyes were lit up and a huge, mischievous grin was on her face.

"What's in your hand Eon?" Ace asked. "Is that holly?"

"Nope." Eon said, chuckling. "It's mistletoe."

"Mistletoe?" Ace asked. "Isn't that the stuff that has that tradition of people kis—"

Ace's sentence was cut short by Shadow tackling him to the ground and pulling him into a full on liplock. Ace's face showed shock for about one second before her leaned into the kiss, wrapping his arms around Shadow and pulling her close.

"Aaawwww" Dialga and Palkia said teasing as they looked into the hallway. "They're making out. How cute."

"Hey now." Eon said, jumping off the ceiling in a flip and righting herself. "This is a big step for them."

"Are you kidding?!" Dialga and Palkia shouted. "They've been an 'official couple' for six months now! They did this before they were dating."

"And let me guess." Eon said, chuckling. "The real big step for them would be to do what you two do on a near regular basis, right?"

"Well" Dialga said, looking down at Ace and Shadow, who were still making out. "Maybe."

"Doubt it'll happen in this century." Eon said, shrugging.

"Oh well." Palkia said. "Well, we're going to go grab some random sh!t gifts to appease the all-powerful goddess of drunkenness and sh!tty traditions. You guys need to come?"

"Yep." Eon said. "Hopefully N shows up to get his gift this time. I'm pretty sure the lovebirds over there are coming too. Ace's also providing transportation as well."

"Well, he said he'd be here for Christmas." Dialga said, remembering an earlier conversation she'd had with the changeling man. "So, there's at least that."

"Well, that's something." Eon said, thinking of her boyfriend. "Last year he was away and didn't make it."

"Well" Palkia said, shrugging. "This year's a new year."

"I guess you're right." Eon said, shrugging as the Reality Duo walked back into the kitchen area. The Eon Goddess turned to her two best friends and chuckled as they finished their make out session.

"Wow!" was all that Ace said as they both sat up.

"That" Shadow smiled at him, tracing her finger along his chest. "was a preview to your Christmas present."

"I think I'm going to enjoy it." Ace said, chuckling softly.

"Well" Eon said, softly kicking Ace in the back. "We need to get going and do some shopping."

"Right." Ace said as he, Shadow, and Eon walked into the kitchen area. Inside were Darkora, Dialga, Palkia, Bianca, Ray, and Melody.

"Ace" Darkora said, moving over to look at her twin's face. "What's this on your lips?"

Darkora swiped her finger against Ace's lips, her finger becoming glossy.

"This smells like strawberry." Darkora said. "Are you wearing chapstick?"

"No." Ace said.

"It's Shadow's." Dialga said, nudging Ace in the arm.

"Why would Ace be wearing Shadow's chapsti—ohh." Darkora said, just before the realization hit her. "Why Ace, you lucky dog, getting your first kiss before I did."

"Ha!" Palkia laughed. "He got his first kiss about nine months ago. This one was longer, however."

"Well" Darkora said, giving her twin brother. "It seems that you've been getting busy before I got here."

"Whatever." Eon said, getting impatient. "Can we go already? We need to get back here so we can beat the sh!t out of each other in the brawl again."

"Right." Ace and Palkia said, summoning a Shadow Force and Spatial Rend respectively.

Melody, Eon, Ace, Shadow, and Bianca went through Ace's Shadow Force while Palkia used Spatial Rend to help himself, Dialga, Ray, and Darkora move incredibly fast.

Arcey and Giratina watched their 'children' leave to quickly buy presents, chuckling to themselves.

"So" Giratina said to Arcey as the Hall was empty except for them. "Was there some hidden purpose to saying that?"

"Yep." Arcey said, grabbing Giratina and speaking in a seductive manner. "Now we're all alone in here."

"So" Giratina asked, wrapping his arms around his love interest. "What should we do?"

"Oh, you know." Arcey said, tracing her finger up Giratina's chest.

"Oh, I can't wait." Giratina said, chuckling. "But, let's let this one be fair."

"How was I unfair last time?" Arcey asked in a mock hurt tone.

"I told you" Giratina said, leaning a little closer to Arcey. "not to use Meta Knight and you did anyway." (I'll bet you guys thought I was going somewhere totally different :P)

"Fine." Arcey said, pouting. "I won't."

"Well, then." Giratina said, walking into the living room. "Challenge accepted."

 _At the mall_

Ace, Shadow, Eon, Melody, Darkora, Palkia, Dialga, Bianca, and Ray appeared in the mall coming through the respective portals they went through a few seconds ago.

"So" Ace said, talking to everyone. "Do we split up and run for gifts?"

"Yep." Palkia said, shrugging. "We should just grab each other a gift card or something. We've already gotten each other our main gifts."

"About that." Ace said, leaning in close to Palkia. "You probably shouldn't have Dialga open your gift to her when the rest of us do."

"Why not?" Asked Palkia, confused. Ace gave him a look that said 'seriously'.

"Oh" Palkia said, getting it. "Right. That's why."

"What did he get her?" Shadow asked her boyfriend. Ace leaned over and whispered the item in her ear. Shadow's face turned as red as Ace's scarf, her eyes widening very slightly.

"Why would you put that under the tree?" she asked, shocked at having heard it.

"We should go grab some gift cards" Dialga said, all of the groups heading to the nearest store and grabbed some gift cards. They wrapped them and quickly teleported back home to hand them to Arcey, who put them in a huge pile and threw them in a bag.

"Now, was that so hard?" she asked in a sarcastic tone.

"Save it." Ace said. "A gift card is a fine gift."

"You can't use a gift card." Arcey said. "It's not a thoughtful gift."

"Not a thoughtful gift?!" the legendaries shouted. "We already got our 'thoughtful gifts' for the tree."

"And" Arcey said. "You'll have to just get another one."

"The f #$ we will!" Ace, Eon, Darkora, Palkia, and Dialga shouted.

Suddenly, a crash was heard from the next room over. Ace, Eon, and Shadow ran over to see two people, a boy and a girl, both about eighteen years old.

The girl was wearing a white skirt that had an orange stripe that ran around it. She wore white leggings with white shoes that had orange laces. She wore a white tank top with an orange fire emblem and white, elbow length gloves that ended in points. She had on a thin, white fur jacket that ended at her elbows. Her hair was long, white and flowing; her bangs covering part her eyes. It went all the way down her back. Her eyes were a piercing blue, though not the same shade as Ace's.

The boy was wearing a pair of black pants that went down to his black shoes. He wore a black leather jacket that went down to his waist. He wore a black shirt that had a blue lightning pattern on the front. His hair was black and went down to his shoulders. His eyes were a dark red color.

"Reshiram, Zekrom." Ace said, addressing the girl and the boy respectively. "to what do we owe the pleasure of seeing you here?"

Reshiram pulled back and punched Ace as hard as she could in the face, knocking the Nightmare Demon backwards a few feet. Shadow ran over to her boyfriend, helping him up. Ace walked over to Reshiram, cracking his knuckles.

"Not the smartest decision, Reshiram." Ace said, chuckling. Eon stood next to him, ready to fight as well. Zekrom stepped up next to Reshiram, getting into a fighting stance.

Reshiram and Zekrom leapt at Ace and Eon respectively. Ace and Eon dodged the punches, countering with two of their own.

"What is wrong with you two?!" Ace shouted as he and Reshiram began to trade powerful blows, neither gaining an advantage.

"You know exactly what's wrong!" Reshiram shouted, using one of her signature moves, Fusion Flare. Her body cloaked itself in an orange fire as she charged at Ace, throwing powerful punches that left burn marks on Ace's skin.

Zekrom also used one of his signature moves, Fusion Bolt. His body became cloaked in electricity as he charged at Eon, throwing punches that shocked the Eon Goddess.

Ace and Eon both hit the wall behind them, falling to the ground. They stood up, more pissed off than hurt.

"Want to show them what we're made of?" Ace asked Eon, chuckling to his best friend.

"Yep." Eon said, chuckling as well.

Ace and Eon released some of their power, causing the room to heat up a little and get a little darker.

The Dark and Fire types summoned their respective energies to their hands, pulling back for powerful punches as they charged at Reshiram and Zekrom.

Ace threw his Dark Punch and Eon threw her Fire Punch. Both of them aimed for Reshiram and Zekrom's faces. Their punches hit their mark, Ace and Eon adding a pulse of their respective types to increase the damage done to the guardians of truth and ideals. The two thought dragons were thrown backwards from the force of Ace and Eon's attacks, both of them standing up in a rage.

"What's going on here?!" Arcey shouted, appearing behind Reshiram and Zekrom and pulling them up by their jackets. "Why are you two breaking into the Hall and fighting with Ace and Eon?"

"We want to know where our mentor is!" Reshiram and Zekrom shouted.

"Kyurem?" Arcey asked, releasing the two dragons. "We haven't seen her in years."

"What was that commotion?" Melody asked, coming into the room. When she saw Reshiram and Zekrom, she froze.

"Well well well." Reshiram said, her tone slightly sinister as she walked over to Melody and grabbing her by her brown top, pulling her up to her (Reshiram was about half a foot taller than Melody). "If it isn't our little gamer girl."

"Well" Melody said, her tone a little pissed off. "If it isn't the hothead bitch from when I trained with Kyurem."

"You'll eat those words!" Reshiram shouted, pulling back her fire cloaked fist as Melody swung her legs back and kicked her hard in the ribs, causing Reshiram to let go of her.

Melody and Reshiram began to exchange blows as the other legendaries in the room watched in awe. Eventually, all the other residents of the Hall, having heard the commotion, came into the room to see what was going on.

Melody threw a psychic infused punch at Reshiram, who met it with a fire infused punch that generated a shockwave that shook the Hall. The seal keeping the Hall in good condition strained itself under the power of the punches of the two powerful fighters.

The force of the punches forced Melody and Reshiram apart as they stared at each other with angry expressions, shouting as they ran towards each other once again. However, instead of punching each other, they hugged each other, laughing as if they were old friends.

"Wait." Darkora said, confused. "What just happened?"

"It's so great to see you again, Melody." Reshiram said, laughing with Melody as Zekrom came over and clapped Melody on the shoulder.

"Great to see you guys too." Melody said. "What brings you here?"

"We're looking for Kyurem." Zekrom explained. "She's been missing. We knew you'd started to search for her some time ago, but we figured we'd check here."

"I decided to stop searching." Melody said, sighing. "Because I joined with the legendaries."

"You're a legendary now?" Reshiram asked, surprised. "That's awesome."

"So, why are you here specifically?" Ace asked.

"We figured Arceus might know something about her." Zekrom said.

"I haven't seen her in months." Arcey said, sighing. "I wish I could help you guys, but I truly don't know."

"Well" Reshiram said, thinking of something. "We did sense an energy signature similar to hers when we went past this one warehouse in the Kanto area, but some Dark force prevented us from gaining access."

"Must have been a pretty powerful Dark barrier." Darkora said, thinking. "You two are pretty powerful."

"Well" Reshiram asked. "Do you know how to dispel it so we can try to find our mentor?"

"Sure." Melody said, eager to help the Dragon Twins.

"We'd need a powerful Dark type." Arcey said.

"Luckily" Darkora said, crossing her arms and giving a small grin. "We have two right here."

"Three" Ace said, pointing to Shadow.

"Oh yeah." Darkora said. "Now, let's go dispel that barrier."

"Right." Ace and Shadow said, both of them using Shadow Force to make it to where Reshiram and Zekrom had referred to instantly. Darkora used Teleport (which she had learned from Mewtwo) to make it there almost as fast.

 _At the barrier_

"Well" Ace said, looking at the Dark field surrounding the building. "It would seem we need to find the Sword of Evil's Bane."

"What the hell's that gonna do for us?" Darkora asked.

"Have you never played Legend of Zangoose?" Ace asked, looking at his twin.

"No." Darkora said, crossing her arms. "I spent my days with our mother, training to become a being strong enough to take out my twin brother if he ever used his powers for evil."

"Well" Ace said, chuckling. "I was raised by Arcey and Giratina so I'm not that evil."

"Not yet." Darkora said quietly, sighing. "So, how do we open the barrier?"

"We absorb it." Ace said, putting his hand up to the barrier, which pulsed at his touch. Dark energy flowed into him as he felt the barrier weaken. Eventually, it disappeared, allowing the Dark types access to the warehouse.

"Ace" Shadow said, concerned for her boyfriend. "Ace you okay?"

"I'm fine." Ace said, though his eyes bad turned black on the irises (the colored parts of the eye—normally Ace's eyes have a deep bluish tint to them, but now they're completely black). The blackness faded a second later, however, but Shadow still held her concern.

"Let's just go inside." Darkora said, a little concerned as well, but hiding it well. "If anything happens to you tell us."

"Got it." Ace said, chuckling. They walked into the warehouse, using their Dark powers to sense their surroundings.

Ahead of them the road split into three paths, each forking away from each other. Darkora took the right path, Shadow took the middle path, and Ace took the right path.

Following behind them were Zekrom and Reshiram, who each took a different path, Zekrom the left and Reshiram the middle.

 _With Darkora and Zekrom_

"When did you get here?" Darkora asked the electric dragon type. Zekrom ruffled his hair and shrugged.

"Just now." He said. "We followed you three here after you dispelled the barrier.

"Just don't get in my way." Darkora said, continuing to walk down the path.

"I doubt it will come to that." Zekrom said, chuckling. "You and I are near on par with each other."

"Well, then" Darkora said, clenching her fists. "Let's hope you can use those skills of yours to survive past the first foe we encounter."

 _With Reshiram and Shadow_

"Reshiram?" Shadow asked, having sensed the fire dragon without even having to look at her. "When did you get here?"

"Almost at the same time you did." Reshiram said. "With the barrier down, we figured that we could help find Kyurem."

"Is Melody here too?" Shadow asked.

"No." Reshiram said, shrugging. "Arceus wanted her to stay behind and help monitor the situation or something."

"She needs a good psychic type to help monitor our vitals." Shadow explained. "Just in case one of us gets hurt and we're separated, we can be guided to each other."

"That makes sense." Reshiram said. "But, what about the pink haired guy? He's a powerful psychic. I can sense the DNA of two powerful psychics in him."

"You mean Mewtwo?" Shadow asked. "He's a clone. He was made with the DNA from Mew and Deoxa, the parents of Mina and Deoxys respectively, two legends in the Hall. He's either the second or third most powerful psychic in the Hall."

"Who's the other one?" Reshiram asked.

"Melody's the second or third." Shadow said. "We've never compared their psychic capabilities with one another so we don't know for sure."

"So who's the first?" Reshiram asked, curious.

Shadow simply giggled and kept walking.

"It's you!?" Reshiram asked, shocked by this statement. "You don't seem like the type to use much power. What species are you?"

"I'm a Gardevoir" Shadow said, putting her hand in her pocket. "But, I'm also a Kyuryoon."

"Really now?" Reshiram said, thinking. "So, what type does that make you?"

"Dark and Psychic." Shadow replied. "Me and Ace have a sort of link that binds us together."

"So it's like it's destined?" Reshiram asked, chuckling as she nudged Shadow with her elbow. "You and him I mean."

"I guess so." Shadow said, shrugging. "We really like each other and love to spend time with each other."

"Ever used mistletoe?" Reshiram asked, grinning to herself.

"Yep." Shadow said, smiling. "I had our best friend Eon help me with it."

"Nice." Reshiram said, putting a hand on Shadow's shoulder. "Bet he enjoyed it."

"He was speechless." Shadow said, blushing.

Suddenly, Shadow jolted upright and stopped dead in her tracks. After about five seconds, she turned around and bolted down the hallway towards where she came from.

"Where are you going?" Reshiram asked, confused as to what could have possibly caused Shadow to turn around and run like she was.

"To help Ace." Shadow said, not breaking her stride.

 _With Ace_

Ace walked down the corridor, scanning his surroundings. He could feel something. Something dark. But, he couldn't place what it was.

" **Are you okay?"** a voice came from inside his head. **"You absorbed a lot of Dark energy back there."**

"Well well well." Ace said, chuckling. "If it isn't my own inner demon. What's it been? Six months?"

" **So you remembered?"** the voice said, laughing. **"I'm touched."**

"When someone torments you for over ten years for the sole purpose of stealing your and your best friend's bodies" Ace said in a flat tone. "You tend not to forget them."

" **Right."** The voice said, shrugging. **"But, my question remains: Are you all right? I don't even think I could absorb that much dark energy and still be fine."**

"You're scanning my vitals." Ace said, seeing something in front of him. "You tell me."

" **Are you sure it's not having a negative effect on your mind?"** the voice asked.

"Darkrai." Ace said, shutting the voice up. "I'm fine."

Almost immediately after he had said that, Ace dropped to his knees, his eyes wide and his body trembling.

 _With the other legendaries_

"What's up with Ace?" Arcey asked May and Sapphire, who were keeping their eyes on the vitals of the members inside the warehouse.

"His heart rate is rising by a little too much to be natural." May said, biting her lower lip.

"Also." Sapphire said, clenching her fists. "his energy level is rising as well."

"That's not good." Arcey said, sucking in a breath.

The God Pokémon then turned to Mewtwo, who was keeping an eye on psychic signals of the legendaries.

"Can you see what's causing it?" she asked the clone.

"No." Mewtwo said, sighing. "Ace's mind is far too guarded for me to get a reading on him. Even if I were to switch into pokéforme, it wouldn't do any good."

"His willpower is stable." Azelf said, running her fingers through her blue hair and fluffing her grey dress while she rubbed the red gem on her head, amplifying her psychic capabilities.

"It's weird." Azelf's twin sister, Mesprit said, shaking her head, causing her long, braided pink hair to ruffle. Her grey outfit was a tank top and pants as opposed to her twin's more formal outfit.

"What?" Arcey asked the Emotion Guardian.

"His primary emotions" Mesprit said, worry in her voice. "are fear and anger."

"Uxie." Arcey said, turning to the blonde haired boy standing next to Mewtwo. "What is Ace seeing? Can you tap into his mind and see what he's seeing?"

"Are you kidding?!" Uxie asked, shocked. "You want me to go in there!? Ace is scary on the outside, so why do you want me to see him on the inside?"

"Do it!" Eon growled, coming over and grabbing Uxie by his grey shirt and holding a Fire cloaked hand up to his face. "My best friend isn't alright and I want to know why. If you don't and he dies, you'll join him."

At this point, Uxie seemed to be a little terrified of the Eon Goddess. Eon very rarely got this angry and when she did there was no stopping her until the object of her anger was resolved (she had a temper, but it wasn't this short). It took a lot of anger for her to threaten a legendary with physical death like that.

"Eon." Giratina said, putting his hand on his daughter's shoulder. "Calm down."

"I'll calm down" Eon said through clenched teeth, her already wild orange hair even more messed up from her anger. "When Uxie here figures out what is going on with Ace."

"Fine." Uxie said, trying to pry Eon's hand off of him. "I'll do it, but calm down. Anger won't bring him back to normal."

"It'll cripple you for life." Eon said in a very dark tone which caused Uxie to flinch and shudder.

"Why is Eon staying again?" Azelf asked Arcey, confused as to why the last member of the Unholy Trinity was remaining behind when she'd much rather be fighting with her two best friends.

"I'm not." Eon said, summoning a large amount of Fire energy. "I'm just trying out my Flash Fire technique."

"Flash Fire?" Arcey asked.

"It's like Teleport." Eon said as she disappeared in a flash of fire (hence the name).

"She's scary." Uxie said, just now recovering from the shock of Eon's anger.

"I used to be just like her when I was younger." Arcey said, smiling with pride at her daughter's spirit.

"Not that much." Giratina said, chuckling.

"So" Uxie said. "I've just seen some freaky sh!t in Ace's mind."

"What?" Arcey asked, definitely concerned at this point.

"Well" Uxie said, shuddering as he began to describe what he had seen inside of Ace's mind.

 _At the warehouse_

Eon arrived at the warehouse in a flash of fire. She entered and came to the division the others had started down. Looking down the middle path, she saw Shadow running back towards her.

"Eon." Shadow said, panting. "Go help Reshiram. I'm gonna check on Ace."

"What's up with Reshiram?" Eon asked.

"Nothing." Shadow said. "But we need to be in pairs so if anything happens, we have backup."

"Got it." Eon said, taking off down the hallway. "Tell me if anything happens to Ace."

"Will do." Shadow said, taking off down the right hallway.

 _With Ace_

All around him he saw mirrors, mirrors depicting images of different faces and mirrors depicting images of the same people. Each one of them was someone he knew personally. Dialga, Palkia, Melody, Darkora, Arcey, Bianca, Eon, Ray, Shadow. Ace looked at the mirrors, realizing that something was off with the mirrors.

Each of the faces and bodies all started looking at him, giving him a small shock from the unexpectedness of the situation. One word escaped from their lips: 'Monster".

"What?" Ace asked, confused.

"You're a monster." All of them said as the bodies walked toward him out of the mirrors and the headshot mirrors disappeared. They grabbed him by his arms. Ace struggled in vain, but somehow they were subduing him (though Shadow and Eon were on the same level as him, he would still be able to wrestle himself from their grip). They managed to get him on the ground, piling on top of him and holding him down. Suddenly Ace realized two things. The first was that he couldn't sense their energy signatures. The second was that he could sense a strange energy signature that he'd never sensed before. He couldn't even pinpoint its type.

"Why are you guys acting like this?" Ace asked, confused. "Are you possessed or something?"

"You're a monster." 'Shadow' said, using Dark Claw on Ace's chest, causing him to cry out in pain as his chest bled. "And you must be destroyed."

Ace then realized that these were imposters, not truly his friends. He began struggling anew, but these beings were more powerful than their originals.

"Focus Energy!" Ace shouted, his energy level surging as he broke free from all of them, standing up and summoning his Dark energy to his hands.

The images flashed, blinding Ace for a second. When he regained his vision, he saw a horrifying sight.

He saw the dead bodies of his friends. Eon was mutilated and had ice on her face and in her eye. Bianca was torn in half, a pool of blood gathering in between the two halves of her body. She stared at Ace with a hollow, chilling expression. Arcey's body was impaled by a weapon that was about a foot and a half long. Shadow's near dead body lay next to Ace on the ground, her heart ripped out and her neck broken. The scariest thing to Ace was that he couldn't tell if this was the hallucination of whatever nightmare he was in or a premonition.

Ace knelt next to the body, putting his hand behind her head. She looked at him with a look of sorrow.

"A-Ace" she said in a quiet, dying voice.

"What is it?" Ace asked, a tear actually coming into his eye. "Who did this to you?"

"Y-you did…" Shadow said as she closed her eyes one last time.

Ace looked at his gloved hands to find them coated with blood, her blood. He simply stared at them, horrified. He put his face in his hand and cried silently.

"All of these deaths could have been avoided." a voice (not Darkrai's) said, booming throughout the area. "You caused them all."

However, the images had disappeared, replaced by a man with white hair and yellow eyes that stared at Ace. He wore a grey uniform and had a look of superiority in his face.

"Who the hell are you?" Ace said, his voice between quiet and a growl.

"You'll find out soon enough." The man said, chuckling as he summoned a yellowish white energy to his hands. Ace's eyes widened slightly as he recognized exactly what type this man was.

"You're the strange presence that I felt when I first entered this f #$ed up nightmare." Ace said, summoning his own Dark energy.

"That's true." The man said. "But, it's not like you can do anything to stop me. You're not pure enough to stop me or even hurt me here."

"Get away from him!" the voice of Shadow rang out through the room as the Dark Empath herself appeared and threw a powerful Dark Punch to the man's face, causing him to disappear.

Shadow walked over to Ace, who seemed relieved to see her. She reached out to him as he hugged her tightly, shedding tears.

"I-I saw" he said, his tone sad.

"I know." Shadow said, shedding a tear of her own as her link to Ace caused her to experience everything he did and vice versa. "I saw it too."

"Was it a nightmare?" Ace asked, regaining his composure. "Or a premonition?"

"It's just a nightmare." Shadow said, hugging Ace tighter. What she couldn't see was Ace's eyes turn completely black for a split second before the blackness shattered, similar to a pane of glass, his eyes returning to their original color.

"It was still scary though." Ace said, wiping his eyes. "It felt so real. Realer than any nightmare I've had before. I don't know why though."

"It's because of the Dark energy you absorbed." Shadow said, chuckling. "You thought you could just absorb all of it and be fine."

"What can I say?" Ace said, shrugging. "I'm badass like that."

"Right." Shadow said, shaking her head with a smile on her face. "That's the reason."

"You know it." Ace said, laughing. "But, seriously though, we should go find Kyurem."

"Right." Shadow said as the two of them moved down the hallway.

At the end of it, they encountered Eon, Darkora, and Zekrom. They looked at Ace and Shadow with relieved looks on their faces.

 _With the legendaries_

"What happened?" Arcey asked. "I just felt Ace's levels return to normal."

"I guess Shadow helped him." Mesprit said, shrugging. "I can sense she's right near Ace, especially considering his main emotion right now is happiness and determination."

"Well, that's good." Mewtwo said, wiping his sweat covered brow. "I was concerned we'd have to go take on our strongest member in full force."

"We could take him." Uxie said, shoving his hand in Mewtwo's direction.

"Doubt it." Mewtwo said. "The highest we've seen his power level go is one billion and that's definitely not his highest."

"So what?" Uxie asked. "He'll never reach that height again for a while."

"What makes you say that?" Arcey asked.

"When I checked what knowledge I could get out of him" Uxie explained. "I found that he wouldn't use that much power again unless absolutely necessary."

"Trust me." Mewtwo said, putting his arm on Uxie's shoulder and leaning on the Knowledge Guardian. "If Ace wanted to destroy any of us, he'd do so without hesitation. Mesprit will attest to that."

"He's right" The Emotion Guardian said.

"Well" Arcey said, sighing. "Let's hope that it won't come to that and that they can find Kyurem.

"Hey, guys." Xerneas said, walking into the room. She wore her usual blue dress with black boots, both of which complemented her rainbow colored hair. "What's up?"

"Ace, Shadow, Eon, Darkora, Zekrom, and Reshiram are going to find Kyurem." Arcey explained. "They're inside the warehouse at the end of the Kanto area."

Xerneas' eyes widened in shock as she began to speak, her voice a bit shakier.

"The one with the disturbing Dark presence in it?" she asked, nervous.

"Yes." Arcey said, confused as to how Xerneas would know that. "How'd you know?"

"When they get back." Xerneas said, her voice still shaky. "Tell them to meet with us for a meeting. I have some things to say to you guys."

"All right." Arcey said, suspicious as to the Life Guardian's motives for this.

"Have they gotten Kyurem yet?" Xerneas asked.

"No.' Arcey said. "I don't know what's keeping them, but I hope it's nothing big."

 _With Ace, Darkora, Shadow, Eon, and Zekrom_

"Where's Reshiram?" Zekrom asked. "I thought she was with you, Shadow."

"No." Shadow said. "I went back to help Ace. I told Eon to go find her and stay with her so we would all have backup."

"When I got here" Eon said. "I didn't see a trace of her."

"Then, where could she be?" Zekrom asked, a little worried at this point.

"Okay" Ace said, thinking up a plan. "Zekrom, you, Eon, and Darkora go back down that hallway and search for some sort of secret alcove or something. Me and Shadow will go on ahead and try to find her there."

"Got it." Eon, Darkora and Zekrom said, nodding. They took off down the hallway while Ace and Shadow went down the other way.

The two Kyuryoon reached the end of the hallway to find a large, open room that had a cage at the end of it. Inside the cage were two women, one in grey and light blue, the other in white. They were Kyurem and Reshiram.

* * *

Well, it seems they've found Kyurem. But, what was that that Ace saw? And who was that strange man? And what could Xerneas want to tell the legendaries? Find out next time on Azure Light 2.


	3. Kyurem Part Two: Past

Chapter Two: Kyurem Part Two: Past

 _Previously on Azure Light 2:_

 _-"You guys need to grab presents"_

" _Why?"_

" _Because I said so."_

 _-"We're looking for Kyurem, our mentor."_

" _We'll help."_

 _-"This barrier is preventing us from entering this warehouse."_

" _Then let's absorb it."_

 _-_ _ **"Are you sure you're alright? That was a lot of Dark energy."**_

" _I'm fine."_

 _-"You're a monster! You must be destroyed!"_

 _-"Who did this to you?"_

" _Y-you did."_

 _-"I-I saw"_

" _I know. I saw it too."_

 _-"Where's Reshiram?"_

" _We haven't seen her. You check that hallway and we'll go on ahead."_

" _Got it."_

 _-"that's Kyurem up there!"_

" _And Reshiram's with her."_

 **Azure Light 2: Chapter Two: Past**

Okay, forget the Christmas thing. I'll just have a couple here and there or make a 'special'. The ideas I have aren't so Christmas themed because the tone of this story is hopefully much darker than its predecessor. Besides, Christmas is over.

"Kyurem!" Ace called. "How'd you get up there?"

"Well" Kyurem said, thinking. "I was in Lavender Town one evening…"

"Some guy knocked us over the head and caged us in here, jackass!" Reshiram yelled, impatient. "Now get us down!"

"Got it!" Ace shouted, aiming a Psycho Cut at the bars of the cage. The two women fell to the ground, both landing on their feet.

Kyurem stood up. She was wearing a grey dress that seemed icy. It had a blue sash on it that was the color of ice. Her hair was icy blue with a yellow streak in the middle. Her eyes were yellow and seemed cold.

"Well, thanks." She said. "It's been a while, Hunter."

Immediately after she said that, Ace held up his hand, charged with Dark energy, at Kyurem. Shadow and Reshiram simply stared at it, shocked.

"Ace" Shadow said, confused as to what Ace was getting at. She scanned Kyurem with her Psychic powers, finding nothing unusual.

"What's the meaning of this?" Kyurem asked, confused and irritated.

"You called me Hunter." Ace said, a smug look on his face as he made the Dark Blast in his hand increase in size. "Of all the things Kyurem does that I don't like, that was something she'd never do. Now, I don't know if you're a duplicate or she's being mind controlled, but I know you're not the real Kyurem in control right now."

"Well, well, well." A voice from behind Kyurem said, chuckling. "So, you figured it out. Too bad you'll die before you can do anything about it."

Out of the shadows from behind Kyurem came a man that Ace and Shadow could have sworn dead two months ago. The man they knew as Dr. Kronos.

Shadow's expression turned to shock as Ace's turned to pure, unbridled anger. He leapt at Kronos, pulling back for a punch while Kyurem fought with Shadow.

"You're pretty good, Empath." Kyurem said as she and Shadow exchanged blows, truly giving it their all.

"You too." Shadow said grimly as she threw a Dark Punch into Kyurem's face that sent her back. Kyurem retaliated by firing an Ice Beam at Shadow, which coated her body in Ice.

Shadow broke the ice, using her Psychic powers to slice Kyurem's arm, causing her to flinch, giving Shadow enough time to land four punches.

 _With Ace and Kronos_

Kronos had a look that suggested he was hiding something as he pulled something out of his pocket. Ace realized all too late what it was.

The Light type stone Kronos held in his hand hit Ace with a burst of his opposite energy, weakening him and giving Kronos a chance to punch him in the face, sending him backwards next to Shadow.

"Now that Kyurem's going to deal with you two" Kronos said, smiling smugly as he walked away. "I can finish my experiments on my newest subject. I think you might know her."

"Give Kyurem back!" Ace shouted, firing a Dark Burst at Kronos, who dodged it. "Or I'll make you regret it."

"I think you have your own problems right now." Kronos said, leaving the room with a smug grin on his face.

"Really now?" Ace said, confident as ever.

"Really." Kyurem said, grabbing Reshiram by the shoulders. Reshiram seemed to know what was going on and struggled as she began to fade into Kyurem's body.

Kyurem's body changed, drastically and immediately. Her grey dress turned lighter and her hair turned white with orange streaks in it. Her eyes turned a bit more orange as her power level rose drastically.

Ace's eyes turned to excited as Shadow rolled her own in response to Ace.

"You're not intimidated." Kyurem said, confused.

"This is gonna be fun." Ace said.

"Well, then." Kyurem said, chuckling. "I'll enjoy killing you that much more."

"Bring it on." Ace said. Kyurem did just that by moving at a speed Ace and Shadow didn't expect and shoved her fist through Ace's chest, firing a huge energy bolt through the hole, which actually showed freezing and burning. The Nightmare Demon dropped to the ground, coughing up blood.

 _With the legendaries_

"What just happened?" Arcey asked, not having fully registered what had happened to Ace.

"I don't know." Mewtwo said, not having understood it himself.

At that moment, Cressa and Diana happened to show up, seeing the legendaries in their small panicked state.

"What's going on?" Diana asked, worried.

"Ace just did something reckless (again)" Mewtwo said, groaning. "And got himself close to death (again.)"

"Oh no!" Diana said, putting her hand up to her mouth. "How's Shadow doing?"

"Not sure." Giratina, who'd been watching Shadow, said.

"Oh" Diana said, clutching her hands. "I hope she's allright.'

 _Current time—With Ace and Shadow_

Shadow could only stare wide eyed as Kyurem removed her fist, allowing Ace to drop to the ground fully, Ace's eyes closing in his own unconsciousness.

"You're next girly." Kyurem said, punching at Shadow.

However, instead of hitting the Dark Empath, Kyurem's punch was caught by a very angry Shadow. Shadow threw her own punch, sending Kyurem into the wall behind her.

Shadow let out an angry scream, her aura and power level skyrocketing. Her hair turned white as her highlights turned bright red. Her eyes turned a deeper shade of red, seeming to pierce the souls of individuals. Her expression was one of intense fury and anger.

Kyurem stood up, pissed off, but not hurt. Shadow looked at her, purely Dark energy emitting from her hands. Kyurem stepped up closer to Shadow, prepared to fight.

"I'm in a good mood" Shadow growled. "So I'm gonna give you one chance to let Kyurem go."

Kyurem responded by punching Shadow in the face three times.

"Well," Shadow said, chuckling. "Chance retracted."

Shadow lunged for Kyurem, the real fight beginning.

Kyurem dodged Shadow's first punch, but was too slow to dodge the roundhouse kick that Shadow delivered to the Ice Dragon's stomach, causing Kyurem to cough out blood.

"Release Reshiram now!" Shadow yelled, using her Psychic powers on Kyurem, ravaging her mind. Shadow then punched Kyurem in the face, adding a Nightmare Burst to disrupt Kyurem's thoughts and cause her to black out, defusing her with Reshiram.

"What happened?" Eon and Zekrom shouted, having just got there.

Shadow still stood there, angry. Her attention turned to Eon and Zekrom, anger still evident on her face. She aimed a powerful Dark Blast at them, not firing it immediately.

"what do we do?" Zekrom asked, a bit intimidated by Shadow at this point.

"Hope she's not using her full power." Eon said, summoning Fire to her fists. She lunged at Shadow, who simply punched her in the face. Eon flew back into the wall, only to be caught by Darkora, who had just arrived.

"Well" Darkora said, a mischievous smile on her face. "Seems I've rescued the princess. Where's my kiss?"

"Up your ass." Eon said, a smile on her own face as she jumped out of Darkora's arms.

"No thanks." Darkora said. "Can you make me a cake instead?"

"Only if you like Pomeg Surprise." Eon said, summoning Fire to her hands as Darkora summoned Darkness to hers and Zekrom summoned Lightning to his.

"Pass." Darkora said, the three of them getting into fighting positions.

"What's up with Shadow?" Darkora asked. "She doesn't seem to be the type to go rogue like this."

"She's not." Eon said. "She's lost control of her anger and we're gonna beat her up until she regains control."

"Sounds fine to me." Darkora said, a smirk coming to her lips.

"You've never sparred with her." Eon said. "I've fought her when she's calm. That's nothing compared to when she's angry. The last person she got angry with was Zygarde and you know what happened to him."

"Right." Darkora said, tensing up. The three of them lunged at Shadow, the Dark Empath knocking them all back with a Psycho Cut that very nearly cut them in half had Darkora not neutralized it with Dark energy.

Shadow prepared to fire another one at them, but a blast of Dark energy hit her in the side of the head, disorienting her. All eyes turned to Ace, who had stood up, blood pouring from his chest wound.

"Ace…" Shadow said, her hair returning to its normal shades as she slumped over, unconscious. Ace caught her before she hit the ground, picking her up bridal style.

"A little help here." Ace said, before Eon took Shadow, allowing Ace to sink back into unconsciousness.

 _Later_

"Holy sh!t, where am I?" Ace sat up in his bed, a pain in his chest. He clutched his chest, confused as to what was causing his chest to hurt. Feeling something strange on his chest, he looked down to see bandages wrapped around his chest.

"Bandages?" he asked, confused. "I could have sworn I've never needed those before."

He unwrapped the bandages, realizing they were very bloody. Underneath, however, his chest was fine, fully healed from his previous injury.

"Kyurem must have done a number on me." Ace said. Looking around the room, he realized that there were several Dark Crystals floating in various places.

" _Must have been a bad injury."_ Ace thought. _"To cause them to use the Dark Crystals, that Light Crystal must have done its work. Kronos sure knows where to find those. I remember he used them in our last encounter. Though, that was to build that weird Light type synthoid."_

Suddenly, Ace realized he wasn't alone in his room. He looked next to him in his bed to find Shadow, curled up in a ball, talking in the midst of her nightmare.

"No, no." she said, tears flowing down her face and onto her (technically Ace's) pillow as she clutched it tightly and trembled with what Ace could assume was fright. "Please don't. Please don't hurt me."

"Shadow." Ace said, realizing what the Dark Empath was dreaming about.

"No!" Shadow said, a little louder. "No, please, no more."

"Shadow, it's allright." Ace said, grabbing his girlfriend and holding her tightly. Shadow simply trembled more, struggling and thrashing.

"No, you're hurting me." Shadow cried, curling tighter and tried to get out of Ace's grasp.

"Shadow, it's me." Ace said, caressing Shadow's arm as the Dark Empath just shuddered.

"No, please no." Shadow grabbed her head, curling tighter into the fetal position. "Daddy, no, please."

At this, Ace clenched his grip around Shadow. He knew what lay in the dark recesses of his best friend's mind and he knew how much she hurt.

"Shadow, it's okay." Ace said, his voice quiet as he comfortingly stroked the girl he'd literally spent his entire life with. "He's gone. He can't hurt you anymore. I'm right here."

Then, Ace began to sing a song he'd sung for years to comfort the girl who'd cried in his arms for years as she'd done for him.

" _When winter comes and snow of white_

 _I will keep you from your fright_

 _When springtime blooms and flowers shine_

 _I'll love you because you are mine_

 _And when the rain begins to fall_

 _I'll hold you tight, won't let you fall_

 _And when the storms rage outside_

 _Inside my trust you can confide_

 _When summer sun shines brightest rays_

 _Close by my side, I'll keep you safe_

 _When autumn leaves turn rainbow hues_

 _I will be here, always for you_

 _Tucked safely in your bed you sleep_

 _Knowing my heart you'll always keep_

 _And when you're frightened by your fears_

 _I'll be right here to dry your tears"_

Shadow's body stopped quivering as she relaxed, breathing a sigh of relief as she sank back into the arms that she knew she could rely on, a smile on her face as she continued sleeping. Ace smiled himself as he continued stroking Shadow's arm, falling back to sleep himself.

" _Funny"_ he thought just before sleep hit him. _"I thought I blocked those horrible memories. Guess she's not safe from him in her nightmares."_

 _Outside the room_

"So" Arcey said, looking into the room. "Is he going to be okay?"

"Well, you know" Giratina said, shrugging. "He's survived worse, so, I'm gonna say yes. Besides, Manaphy told me he was gonna be fine, so I'm trusting her judgement on it."

"That's good." Arcey said, running her fingers through her long white hair with a worried expression on her face. "It's just that we've never had to use Dark Crystals on him before."

"Those weren't for healing." Giratina said. "He was exposed to the energy of a Light Crystal, so we're negating it with the Dark Crystals."

"Oh, right.' Arcey said, remembering. "So, that bastard Kronos is still alive, huh?"

"Yeah." Giratina said, clenching his fists. "I thought Shadow managed to take care of him the last time they encountered him."

"Me too." Arcey said, remembering that specific encounter that Ace had told about one of the times they went to Alamos Town.

 _Flashback—two months ago_

Kronos stood in his business suit, smiling evilly at the world he was destroying. His synthoid, a monster by the name of Kortella, was preparing to fire a massive energy blast at the city of Alamos using the powers of Dialga and Palkia that Kronos had bioengineered into the synthoid.

Kortella was blonde with blue eyes that were near the color of the skies. She wore a blue battle suit that seemed to be like scales. It had white gloves that went halfway up her arms. The red boots of the suit had two inch heels on them, though this had no effect on the synthoid's walking speed. The expression on her face was one of pure glee and happiness, showing that she loved the idea of destroying the city. However, her moment of fun was cut short.

"Hey, Super Saiyan!" came the voice of Ace from behind her. "This town is under my protection, so if I were you, I'd stop trying to go all Freeza on the place. If you lay one finger on even a single speck of dust in this town, I'll break every bone in your body, crush it into dust, and make you snort it like cocaine!" (I don't condone the use of cocaine)

"Bring it on, Darkling.' Kortella sneered, absorbing the energy from her death ball. She cupped her hands by her side, thrusting the energy into the space between her cupped hands.

"Nice try, Android." Ace said, raising his power level. "But, firing a Kamehameha (A/N what's this, the fifth DBZ reference I've made in 10 lines?) won't do a damn thing against me. I'm much too powerful for that."

Kortella fired the beam at Ace, who shot his own from his left hand, cancelling out the Light Beam.

Kortella then shifted her gaze to the inhabitants of Alamos Town, who were watching the ensuing fight between the legendary and the synthoid. She fired ten beams of Light energy, all of them heading toward a teenage girl with blonde hair and a pink coat over a white shirt and white shoes. Her hair was fashioned in bell shapes and hung down over her shoulders.

"Alice!" Ace shouted, moving as fast as he could to reach the girl, tackling her to the ground and covering her with his body. All of the blasts of Light energy struck him, causing him to jolt.

Once they stopped, Ace stood up, offering the girl, Alice, his hand. She accepted it, standing up.

"Are you okay?" Ace asked her, his tone concerned.

"I'm fine." Alice said, giggling. "How about you? You sure took some powerful blasts."

"I've had worse injuries." Ace shrugged. "an Oblivion Wing to the chest makes these seem like water balloons."

"Well, if you say so." Alice said, understanding. "Are you and Shadow still coming over for dinner?"

"Yep." Ace said. "Just gotta take care of Android 22 here and we'll be right over."

"Android 22?" Alice asked, confused.

"Gero was 20" Ace explained. "And Cell was the 21st, so this one is 22."

"Oh, is see." Alice said, understanding. "Though, she seems kinda like 18."

"Yeah, I see that." Ace said. "How's your grandmother by the way?"

"She's fine." Alice said. "How about Shadow? I haven't seen her."

"She's paying a visit to the Doc right now." Ace said, cracking a smile. "She'll be here soon."

"Well, then' Kortella said, landing in front of the two of them. "I guess I'll have to kill you before I become outmatched."

"If there were music playing it would be Megalovania." Ace said, ominously.

"What does that even mean?" Kortella asked, confused.

"It means" Ace said, his eyes glowing red and his hand extending towards Kortella, Dark energy in the palm. "You're gonna have a bad time." (how many people get that reference?)

 _With Shadow—a little earlier_

"It's over, Kronos." Shadow said as she arrived in the room where Dr. Kronos was watching his synthoid destroy the city. "I'm her to stop you.'

"Ahh, Shadow Darkstar." Kronos said, his voice sinister. "How good of you to show up. I'm surprised you're not trying to stop my synthoid."

"Oh, I wouldn't worry about that." Shadow said, chuckling. "Someone's already on that."

"What do you—" Kronos said, turning around to find Ace battling Kortella.

"Damn it!" Kronos shouted. "That Nightmare Demon will be a match for Kortella."

"Yep." Shadow said, charging up a Dark Ball. "Now, I'm gonna stop you once and for all."

"Bring it on, Darkstar!" Kronos said, getting into a fighting stance.

Shadow launched her Dark Ball into the Doctor's face, causing him to fall to the floor, writhing in the dark energy.

"You deserve so much worse." Shadow said, her voice growing darker. "For all the people you've hurt."

"Then do it." Kronos said, a sneer on his face. "You know you want to. I know how you've had nightmares because of what I've done to you. How your memories are plagued because of me. Go ahead and kill me. Your friend would."

"No." Shadow said, turning around to walk away. "I'm not an executioner. Whether or not you've hurt me and so many other people, it's not my place to end your life."

"Foolish brat!" Kronos shouted, standing up and walking over to Shadow, grabbing her arm. Shadow instantly tensed up, something from her past returning to her.

Kronos backhanded Shadow with enough force to send her through the wall behind her.

"You're still that pathetic little girl you were years ago." He said, standing over her with a large ball of Psychic energy in his hands. "I actually thought you'd be something of a threat to me."

"I" Shadow said, standing up with Dark energy in both hands, her tone in a growl and her expression one of anger. "Am not the scared little girl you once knew, the one that you could intimidate simply by your own presence. I am a legendary and I am more than powerful enough to stop you."

"Prove it." Kronos said, chuckling.

Shadow moved faster than Kronos could track, punching him into the ground and shoving her fist through his chest.

"That enough for you?" Shadow said darkly as she walked out of the room, not looking back.

Once she made it onto the street, the beaten form of Kortella dropped in front of her. She looked up to see Ace waving with a smile on his face. Shadow smiled back, waving, her previous encounter forgotten. Ace dropped to the ground in front of her, his hand on his hip.

"How'd your part go?" he asked.

"Good." Shadow said, her tone telling Ace that she didn't want to talk about it. "So, what do we do now?"

"You" Ace said, looking at Shadow's arm, the sleeve of her jacket soaked with blood from Kronos. "need to wash up. We're eating at Alice's house tonight, remember?"

"I hope Alicia makes that really good pasta." Shadow said, licking her lips.

"Me too." Ace said.

"And' Shadow said, a mischievous grin on her face. "I hope you don't eat it all before the rest of us get any."

"No promises.' Ace said, rubbing the back of his head, which earned him a gentle elbow to his side from Shadow.

The two of them then walked to Alice's house, knocking on the door of her house.

An older woman with red eyes and green hair wearing a flowing white dress opened the door, her face lighting up when she saw Ace and Shadow.

"Ace, Shadow!" She said, pulling the two of them inside. "You're here. Great!"

'Hey, Alicia." Ace and Shadow said, waving at the woman, Alicia.

"We made pasta for tonight.' Alicia said, walking into the kitchen and coming back with two plates, one for Ace and one for Shadow. Ace and Shadow grabbed them, licking their lips.

"So, Ace" Alice said, leaning onto Ace. "Have you gotten some action with Shadow yet?"

Shadow's response to this was to turn as red as the scarf Ace wore around his neck. Ace's response was to use his shadow powers to wrap Alice's mouth with shadow tendrils. As the Audino girl (Alice) struggled with the large amount of shadows surrounding her mouth and preventing her from moving her lips, Ace and Shadow went into the kitchen to get some food.

"This is really good." Ace said, sitting close to Alice and moving his food close to her (the shadows were still around her mouth). Alice had given up on trying to remove them at this point and crossed her arms and pouted.

"Allright, fine." Ace said, laughing. He snapped his fingers and the shadows around her mouth disappeared.

"You jerk!" Alice said, crossing her arms again.

"Serves you right." Alicia said, laughing as well. "You never ask a couple about their private business. Plus, I don't think they're the type to talk about that sort of thing."

"Maybe" Alice said, a sly grin on her face. "It's because they're inexperienced."

Shadow turned as red as Ace's scarf once again. Ace lightly smacked Alice over the head, getting a snicker out of her.

"Well" Alicia said, bringing out a cake. "I finished dessert. Who wants some?"

All three of the other beings went straight for the kitchen, Ace somehow managing to get the biggest piece of cake.

 _Present time—With Arcey and Giratina_

"It seems that Kronos might still be continuing his synthoid experiments." Arcey said, thinking. "Hopefully, he won't be able to complete that 'ultimate synthoid' he boasted of making."

"If he does" Giratina said gravely. "Will the legendaries be enough?"

"don't ask that." Arcey said, hitting Giratina in the arm. "I don't want to hear any discouraging statements from you."

"Fine." Giratina said. "But, what will happen if he truly is resuming his plans? What if Xerneas is the key to his machine?"

"No." Arcey said, sighing. "Kronos isn't like that. He's far too smart for that. If I know him, he'll try to drive the legendaries and his targets to the brink of their humanity and sanity with one of his synthoids, then send out that synthoid to take out the target at their weakest."

"We need to stop him." Giratina said.

"Well, we're not sending Ace and Shadow." Arcey said. "They need to recover. Let them go on a date or something to recuperate and we'll work on Kronos."

"Right." Giratina said, nodding. "Think they'll be distracted long enough for tonight?"

"Oh, don't worry." Arcey said, smirking. "I've got that covered."

 _With Ace and Shadow_

Shadow woke up, blinking her eyes and rubbing the water out of them. She turned over, realizing that she was not only in Ace's bed, but also in his arms, Ace being asleep. She remembered the nightmare she'd experienced, shuddering. But, she also remembered a soft voice, singing to her to comfort her. A voice she'd known for twenty years.

Ace yawned and stretched as he woke up, shaking his head. He looked at Shadow, who was looking at him.

"Morning, Shadow." Ace said, cracking his back. "You slept okay. And you didn't kick me off the bed like Maura."

Shadow giggled, remembering how Ace had said on numerous occasions that the young Ice type had accidentally gotten too much of the covers and shoved Ace off the bed. Each time Ace would throw her into the Dark Void for the remainder of his sleep, leaving her to a less than fitful sleep. Though, Ace would never outright harm the girl, a small nightmare was very efficient of teaching her a lesson about sleeping peacefully.

"Well" she said. "I'm a quieter sleeper than Maura."

"Damn straight." Ace said, getting up. He didn't bother to change clothes (Arcey and Giratina had put him in fresh ones after they dressed his wound).

"So" Shadow said, standing up as well. "What should we do?"

"Wanna go out?" Ace asked casually.

"Why Ace Hunter" Shadow said, leaning close to her best friend. "Are you asking me on a date?"

"Maybe." Ace said, shrugging.

"Well" Shadow said, extending her hand, which Ace took. "I accept."

"Hopefully" Ace said, laughing. "A certain blonde we know won't crash it and about get her ass kicked by a certain Empath I know."

Shadow giggled, remembering the first time Ace had asked her on a date and how Cressa, possessed by Cresselia, her inner demon, had attacked her and Ace (see: Azure Light chapter 13).

The two of them walked out of the room, noticing Arcey and Giratina on the other side, looking at them.

"Are you okay?" Arcey asked Ace.

"I'm fine." Ace said. "It was just a flesh wound."

"Well" Arcey said, putting her hands on her hips. "You need to stop getting so many flesh wounds then."

"Part of the job." Ace said, shrugging as he and Shadow walked toward the front door of the Hall of Origins, walking through it.

 _Mall Food Court_

"This place?" Shadow asked.

"Well" Ace said, shrugging. "I figured since our first date at the burger joint didn't work out, we could try again here."

"Okay." Shadow said, shrugging as well. The two of them entered a burger restaurant, sitting down and looking at the large menu hanging up above the restaurant's registers. They walked up to the registers, ordering their food and sitting down. However, before they could finish their food, a certain blonde they knew and her little sister walked up to them.

"Hi, guys." Diana said, Cressa sitting down next to Ace and Shadow. Shadow looked at Ace with a smug expression.

"I did not know this would happen." Ace said, copying her look. "You know as well as I do that this is chance."

"Well, Ace" Cressa said. "I need your help with something."

"In the middle of something here." Ace said, nodding towards Shadow. "Busy. Ask your sister."

"Well, I need a man's opinion." Cressa said, taking Ace's arm.

"Why not ask another guy in the Hall?" Ace asked. "I'm sure they'd help you."

"I can't." Cressa said flatly. "Palkia's too immature, Mewtwo couldn't care less, Giratina's busy, and Ray's helping Bianca with something."

"Can it wait?" Ace asked.

"Noooo." Cressa said, drawing out the word.

"Ugh! Fine!" Ace said. "Shadow, can you hold on for a few minutes?"

"Sure." Shadow said. "I'm sure Diana will be more than willing to keep me company."

"Okay." The Crystal Fairy said, sitting down in front of Shadow.

Ace and Cressa walked off towards a few stores while Diana and Shadow sat down and talked.

 _Split conversation—(this is my first time doing this, so cut me a little slack—also remember Shadow is with Diana and Ace is with Cressa—a dash (-) means a shift to another location)_

-"So, what do you see in Shadow?" Cressa asked.

-"What do you see in Ace?" Diana asked. "You know, as a person and all?"

-"Well" Ace said, thinking. "She's my best friend I've known for twenty years."

-"He's always had my back." Shadow said.

-"She's kept me human." Ace said.

-"You seem a bit over protective, though." Cressa said, thinking.

-"No, he's not." Shadow said, crossing her arms.

-"Shadow's first instinct isn't fighting." Ace said. "I'm always one to let her handle her own situations, but if she can't handle it, I'm right there with her."

-"Shadow." Diana said, taking Shadow's hand. "Something is troubling you. I may not be a Gardevoir, but, I can tell you're thinking about something that's not positive."

-"Ace" Cressa asked carefully. "Is Shadow alright? She seemed kind of off when I saw her. Like she was afraid of something."

-"I—I had a nightmare earlier." Shadow said, sighing as she said it.

"What about?" Diana asked, concerned and curious.

"My father." Shadow said, shuddering. "I dreamed of memories of my father. Not good ones."

"What happened?" Diana asked.

"It's nothing." Shadow said, looking away from Diana and towards the floor.

"I'm sure wherever he is" Diana put her hand on Shadow's arm. "He's looking down on you and wishing the best for you."

-"Are you f #$ing kidding me!?" Ace nearly shouted. "That bastard doesn't deserve any good he's had much less to be a father."

"Why do you say that?" Cressa asked.

-"He was very abusive." Shadow said, sighing.

-"Every f #$ing day" Ace said, enunciating every syllable, his voice nearly in a growl. "She would leave her house with cuts, bruises, black eyes, or bloody nose."

-"He kept saying that it was my fault my mother died." Shadow said, still not looking at Diana. "For three years, until I was seven years old, he would abuse me. Ace was there, though, and he comforted me."

-"I would take her into the woods to play." Ace said, chuckling at the memories for a second before his face darkened once again. "To simply distract her from her home life. There wasn't much else I could do."

"There were days" Shadow said. "That all I would do was cry on Ace's shoulder. He always comforted me, mostly by singing to me."

-"Oooh" Cressa said, getting a mischievous look in her eyes. "You could sing?"

-"He sang this lullaby that his mother sang to me." Shadow said, smiling a little at the thought. "Even today, if I ever feel sad he'll sing it for me and it makes me feel content and safe. But, don't tell him I said that."

-"Why didn't you just take her and leave?" Cressa asked.

"We lived on New Moon Island." Ace said. "You know there's no easy way off that place. Not even Lugia could navigate those skies or waters. Though, I heard there was a new Guardian of the Sea going by the name Aora of the Lugani Tribe. She's like two years younger than me. (she's from TLF)"

-"Whatever happened to Lugia?" Diana asked, curious. "You guys don't talk about him much."

"He died." Shadow said sadly.

-"What happened?" Cressa asked.

"I killed him." Ace said.

-"What?" Diana asked. "Why?"

-"He had Pokerus." Ace said, sighing. "It took him over and I was forced to fight him, eventually killing him."

"I'm so sorry." Cressa said, putting her hand on Ace's shoulder.

"It's fine." Ace said. "He wanted me to do it anyway."

-"So" Shadow asked. "Why are you asking these personal questions?"

-"Uh, no reason." Cressa said, looking up and away from Ace.

"You're stalling us from something, aren't you?" Ace asked.

-"Yes." Diana said. "Arcey told us to keep you guys occupied so they could set up for the Christmas party."

"So, we're the lucky couple?" Shadow asked.

-"Yippee." Ace said unenthusiastically as he and Cressa made their way back to Shadow and Diana.

 _End split conversation (doubt I'll do another one of those)—At the Hall of Origins—later_

"Quiet, quiet!" Arcey shushed everyone as the dark room hid them from the door. Said door opened, Ace, Shadow, Cressa, and Diana walked in.

Suddenly, the lights all came on and the legendaries that were hiding all stood up yelling 'Merry Christmas!'.

"It seems you're the lucky couple for this year." Arcey said, tying a chain to Ace and Shadow's wrists. The expressions on the two Kyuryoon's faces were ones that said 'oh, Arceodammit!'.

"Now" Palkia said. "As the lucky couple, you have to do the New Year's challenge."

"Yeah, no." Ace said, snapping his fingers and causing a portal through the Distortion World to appear below him and Shadow, which they disappeared into.

"So, they disappeared." Palkia said.

"Yep." Arcey said, chuckling. "But, don't worry. Only I can remove the chain. It's infused with my power."

 _With Ace and Shadow_

"I'll bet she told them only she could remove the chain." Ace said, chuckling as a broken chain lay on the floor at their feet. "While I wouldn't have minded this at any other point of the year, today isn't the day to do this."

"Yeah." Shadow said, giggling. "Imagine what they'd have us do."

"Not this time." Ace said. The two of them exited the door, Ace grabbing the chain.

They walked into the living room, everyone looking at them. Arcey noticed the broken chain and her eyes widened.

"How did you do that?" She asked, shocked.

"Dark beats Omni." Ace said, grinning. "You should have thought of the fact that I can output more energy than you."

"Dammit!" Arcey cursed. "I knew I should have laced it with Light energy."

"Too late." Ace said, dropping the chain. "So, let's get this party started."

But, before they could get the party started, the door was kicked in by an enraged man.

The man wore red combat boots with black pants. His shirt was grey and he wore a red jacket over it. He wore red gloves that seemed to end in claws. His hair was black with two red stripes and went down past his shoulders. His eyes were red with hints of blue in them.

"Where's my sister?!" he shouted, rage in his voice.

"Arceo, Yveltal." Ace said, not intimidated by Yveltal. "What's your deal?"

"My sister has been missing for the past three days." Yveltal growled, grabbing Ace by his shirt and pulling him closer to him. "And I want to know where she is."

"Do you think" Ace said, still not intimidated by the Destruction God's anger. "If she were her she wouldn't have called you or something?"

"She complained about premonitions for a few nights." Yveltal said, releasing Ace. "Three nights ago, I woke up and she was gone. I've been looking for her ever since."

"We'll help you find her." Eon said.

"Yeah." Ace agreed. "Xerneas is a good friend and I don't want to see her hurt."

"Where's the last place you could feel her energy?" Arcey asked.

"At this weird place." Yveltal said. "We need to find her. I sense that she could be in trouble. I had a strange dream that she was calling for my help."

"Got it." Ace said. "Let's go."

So Ace, Eon, and Yveltal ran out the door, Yveltal leading them to where he could last sense his sister.

 _In an unknown location_

Dr. Kronos stood over his creation and adjusted the finishing touches. A wicked smile creeped across his lips as he thought of the uses he would have for his tool. He wiped his brow of sweat, brushing through his black hair. His red eyes lit up with an evil bloodlust and malice.

"We'll see just who's ready for this." He said. "Be ready, Darkstar. I'll bring you back to my way yet."

As Kronos pulled out a tool from a tray next to him, he noted the fine tuning of his invention. In the shadows one could tell that it had a humanlike shape. However, what Kronos was working on had more than human features.

"Soon, very soon." Kronos said, though to whom he was addressing, it was unclear. "This world will be at my feet. And there's not a single being on the planet who can stop me."

He looked at his creation one last time, grinning evilly. As he turned away, however, the creation twitched.

A single, golden eye opened.

* * *

Okay, before you call me on jipping the Kyurem fight, i honestly couldn't figure a way for this fight to resolve other than the way it did. I'm not done with Kyurem, but like when i did 1447 in the original, i don't want to just start this epic fight without giving Kyurem proper introductions first. Plus, the other stuff in the chapter needed to be used. The next chapter will be better as will the arc after it. Hope you enjoyed. Until next time.

Oh, and Cressa was an idea submitted to me by Allthrustnovector for the original Azure Light (she made her debut in chapter 11).


	4. Separate Paths Part One: New Places

Chapter 3: Separate Paths Part One: New Places

* * *

So, this arc will have two separate stories (hence the title), one involving Shadow, and one involving Ace and Eon. The reason I'm doing this is because I wanted to do this story with Shadow and didn't want to hold it off for two or so chapters. It will jump back and forth, but I'll make it as obvious as I can (note: they won't just be in separate locations—:P)

Also, the character sheet for Rose, a character introduced in this chapter, is on my deviantart account. She was an idea submitted to me by Venatorix on this site.

* * *

 _With Shadow_

Shadow watched her best friends leave with Yveltal to find Xerneas. She wished them luck, waving with the other legendaries.

"I'm thirsty." Bianca said. "I haven't had much to drink."

"I'll get us both something." Shadow said, stepping into the kitchen.

Suddenly, she shouted, a pain in her head causing her Psychic powers to expand. She tried to restrain them, but she became unable to. The world started spinning for a minute and then everything went black.

 _With Ace, Eon, and Yveltal_

"So, Yveltal" Ace asked the Destruction God as they moved at supersonic speeds to Yveltal's destination. "Anything we should know about this place before we go in?"

"Xerneas mentioned something about some horrible creature, evil beyond anything." Yveltal said. "Something that must not be created. She seemed to imply that her power was needed to bring the creature about."

"Seems like we need to find her before she can be used that way." Ace said.

"Right." Yveltal said. "Well, here's the place."

The trio stopped in front of a house that looked abandoned, like no one had lived in it for years.

"This is where you last sensed her?" Ace asked, confused.

"This is the first time I've seen it too." Yveltal said. "The trail didn't go this far last time."

"So, we're going in this blind?" Eon asked.

"I guess so." Yveltal said. "I hope that's not a problem."

"Nope." Ace and Eon said, grinning evilly as they cracked their knuckles and necks. "But, let's just hope there are some fresh asses to kick."

"I hope Xerneas is in here." Yveltal said. "I've found so many false trails."

"Don't worry.' Ace reassured his ex-foe (see Azure Light chapter 3). "We'll get her back."

"And" Eon added. "We'll kick the ass of whoever took her."

"Right." Ace said.

"Thanks guys." Yveltal said as he clenched his fists. The three of them walked into the house, ready to face the unknown things inside.

 _With Shadow_

The Dark Empath woke up, rubbing her head. She had a minor headache from whatever had happened to her.

"Where am I?" she asked herself, looking around at her surroundings. She seemed to be in a cave of sorts.

"This cave…" Shadow said, looking at it. "It seems to be like Turnback Cave. But, it looks abandoned, like no one's been here in years."

Shadow stood up, looking around. She found markings on the walls, seeming to be like a journal entry.

"October, 29XX" she read. "Dakurai is truly out of control. He's truly given in to the Dark nature. Without anyone on his level, we won't last much longer."

"Wonder why this is dated two years in the future." Shadow said.

"Leave this cave now!" a stern, female voice shouted at Shadow. Shadow barely had time to duck or turn around when a fist slammed into her face. She slammed into the wall with almost enough force to break it.

She slid down the wall, dropping to her knee. The figure that hit her grabbed her by the neck, raising her up over their head. Said figure was hidden in the darkness of the cave and was about Shadow's height, but about six inches shorter, though Shadow could still tell it was a woman. She wore a cloak that hid her face and body.

"I don't know who you are" the girl said, growling. "Or why you look like her. But, you better drop the disguise right now or I'll break your neck."

Shadow, thinking quickly, shot a Dark Pulse into the person's face, causing her to drop Shadow.

"Tell me who you are" Shadow said, charging up a powerful Dark Blast. "Or I'll pump you full of so much Dark energy, you'll bleed black."

"Pretty dark for someone who's supposed to be the kind, caring girl." The girl said, holding out her hand, charged with green energy.

"You attacked me first." Shadow said, pulling back her fist. "Surrender or I'll attack myself."

"Try me." The girl said, grinning as she chuckled.

"Kyuryoon…" Shadow said, the girl tensing up a little at the word. "Black Dragon…"

"D-don't try to bluff me with that phony move." The girl said, her voice shaky. "I-I know you can't use it. Only the real one can use that."

"Shadow Punch!" Shadow shouted, lunging at the girl, who threw up a Protect to shield herself. The Kyuryoon Black Dragon Shadow Punch, however, broke straight through the Protect, slamming into the face of the girl, who flew back into the wall, sliding down, almost into unconsciousness.

"You really are Shadow." The girl said, getting up and hugging Shadow. "I thought you were either a wraith from the cave or some transforming Pokémon playing a nasty trick. I'm sorry I threatened you like that. I didn't think you were real, considering…well, that's not important."

"It's alright" Shadow said, hugging the girl back. "But, who are you?"

"Oh, right" the girl said sheepishly. "I guess I kind of forgot."

The girl removed her cloak hood to reveal that she had long, green hair and huge blue eyes. Her hair had a white flower in it as well as two antennae, which were plastic toys. She wore a necklace that had a flower pendant on it.

"Cela?" Shadow asked confused. "What are you doing?"

"We weren't sure if you were one of Dakurai's dark illusions or not." Cela said. "So we went to investigate."

"We?" Shadow asked, raising an eyebrow.

"Shadow!" came a high pitched voice from above the Dark Empath. Shadow looked up just in time to see a pink blur tackle her to the ground. "Good to see you!"

"Good to see you too, Mina." Shadow said, pulling herself up and taking a good look at the pink clad psycat girl.

Mina was wearing a short sleeved jacket that was a dark pink. She had on pants, shoes, and a shirt that were also pink. Her bubblegum pink hair was as wild as it ever was, hanging all around her, just past her shoulders. Her eyes were huge (not as huge as Cela's, but still huge) and were as pink as her hair.

"Why are you two in Turnback Cave, though?" Shadow asked. "I thought we were forbidden from entering Turnback Cave because it led to the Distortion World."

"We're hiding out here." Cela explained. "Us and the remaining legendaries. Dakurai is too powerful for us to fight."

"Who's Dakurai?" Shadow asked. Cela turned a little pale and her gaze moved from Shadow's. She fumbled over a response for a minute, trying to figure out what to say, but eventually just dodging the question altogether.

"Let's find the other legendaries." She said, her voice quieter. "Then we can get this all sorted out."

 _Later_

Cela and Mina led Shadow through the maze of Turnback Cave. Shadow knew the way from when she, Ace, and Eon used to come here (despite Giratina's stern warnings) and play. In fact, it was here that she and Ace learned how to use Shadow Force. Eventually, they reached an end to the path, a dark, ghostly throne sitting at the end of the room.

On the throne was Giratina. However, he was wearing a suit of grey and golden armor that had spikes on the gauntlets and red stripes around the waist. The faceplate of the armor curved downward around his face, covering his mouth and causing his voice to sound a bit more demonic. It had a black cape that seemed to be comprised of black, shadowy tendrils.

Shadow tensed up slightly, the situation becoming a little clearer in terms of threat level. For Giratina to put on this armor meant that the threat was more than his normal power could handle. His armor increased his power and allowed him to enter his Origin Forme, even more powerful than when he simply used his Griseous Orb, the material of which the armor was entirely comprised of.

"Cela, Mina." Giratina said, acknowledging their presence. "Did you figure out what the disturbance was?"

"Yeah." Cela said, nodding towards Shadow.

"What?!" he said, noticing Shadow. "how is this possible?! Er—I mean, how did it go, Cela and Mina?"

"Shadow!" came an energetic voice from Shadow's left. A girl dressed in a light blue shirt with a dark blue skirt jumped onto Shadow, hugging her around the neck. She wore blue boots that went up to her knees. Around her neck was a blue crystal, pure as ice. Her hair faded from pink to orange to yellowish orange to yellow. Her eyes were large and blue, the color of ice.

"You came back!" the girl, Maura, shouted, laughing as she hugged the Dark Empath.

"Came back?" Shadow asked. "Where did I go?"

"Well, you went out to talk to—" Maura began to say before she was cut off by a woman clad in a metallic blue armor. She carried a sword made of a similar material. Her steel blue hair flowed down to her midriff as her cold, red eyes bore into Shadow.

"So" she said. "My little time trick worked. You're here from the past."

"What are you talking about?" Shadow asked. "How did you bring me from the past?"

"No idea." Dialga, the woman, shrugged. "I just tried to use a focused version of my Roar of Time a couple of months ago to try to bring a powerful fighter to us to help us. I guess it took that long for it to work. I really expected a different fighter, but since there's not another one of you, I guess you're our best bet."

"What do you mean 'there's not another one of me'? Shadow asked, suspicious.

"Shadow." Giratina said, standing up, his tone soft and stern at the same time. "You're supposed to be dead."

 _With Ace, Eon, and Yveltal_

"This house is oddly abandoned." Ace observed, taking in his surroundings.

"Yeah." Yveltal observed. "It's odd. I can sense Xerneas around here, but she's clearly not in this house."

"I can sense someone else." Ace said, tensing up slightly.

"Are they enemies?" Eon asked, her fingers beginning to heat up in anticipation.

"Can't tell." Ace said. "Though, it is a familiar aura. I can't place who it could be, but I don't think they're a major enemy."

"Still." Yveltal said, summoning two Dark Balls. "I don't want to get caught off guard."

"Right." Ace said as they made their way into the next room.

Inside the room was someone with their back tuned to them, fiddling with a strange device on the wall.

"Please work." the person, a woman, said, seemingly calm, but in actuality nearing the end of her patience. "I need to stop him."

"Um, excuse me." Eon said, causing the woman to tense up quickly. "Who are you and what are you doing here?"

The woman stood up and turned around. She was about five inches taller than Ace. She wore green boots with yellow tips that went almost up to her knees. She wore a light green swimsuit like uniform that went partially down her legs. Its sleeves went down to her elbows. Over that she wore a darker green overwear object (have no idea what it's called) that opened in the bottom like leaves. She wore green gloves, but attached to her wrists were two large, flower shaped objects, one red and one blue. They seemed to have holes into which one's hand could be inserted. Around her neck was a cape that had a leafy look and feel to it. It was fastened by a red, rose petal circle. The circle, however, seemed to be missing one of its four petals. Also around her neck was a gold band that was very reflective. Her hair was white and its shape resembled that of a flower's (especially if she was looked at from the front). Over her eyes she wore a green mask that had large holes cut out so her eyes could be seen easily (it was sort of like a masquerade mask mixed with a superhero's mask). Her eyes were a beautiful shade of red and seemed to shine.

"Oh, I'm sorry." The woman said, apologizing. "Do you live here?"

"No." Eon said. "But, we're wondering why you're here all the same."

"I guess I should start with introductions." The woman said, holding out her hand. "I'm Rose."

"I'm Eon." Eon said, taking her hand, surprised when she realized that Rose apparently had a strong grip. "And those two are Ace and Yveltal."

"Ace?" Rose said, looking at the Nightmare Demon with recognition and curiosity. "As in Hunter?"

"Yeah…" Ace said, beginning to scan Rose's aura at her tone.

"You don't seem to have changed much." Rose said, throwing her arms around Ace, surprising him. "You're still the same boy I used to know."

"Wait a minute…" Ace said, a spark of recognition entering his eyes. "Your middle name wouldn't happen to be—"

"Don't you dare." Rose said in a quiet tone that conveyed a subtle threat.

"Yep." Ace said, at this point returning the hug. "Same one."

But, suddenly, Ace's tone turned harsh.

"Where the hell were you?!" he said, looking angrily in Rose's face.

"Well" Rose began to explain. "It was the Sharpedo Pirate Gang…"

"I had to tell her you weren't coming back!" Ace said loudly, shifting his position to holding Rose by her shoulders, his voice sorrowful and some tears coming to his eyes. "Do you know how hard it is to tell a seven year old who's already crying because she lost her home and mother that her sister isn't coming back either?"

 _With Eon and Yveltal (having their own conversation)_

"Who is this?" Yveltal asked the Eon Goddess, looking at Rose.

"I have no idea." Eon said, shrugging. "But, I guess Ace does."

"Who are they talking about?" Yveltal asked.

"Again, no idea." Eon said.

 _With Ace and Rose_

"I'm sorry." Rose said, hugging Ace again. "But, I know you've kept her safe for me."

"You're gonna have to tell her why you left." Ace said.

"I can't." Rose said. "After this, I'm leaving again. I'm sorry, but I don't think I can tell her quite yet."

"The F #$ you are!" Ace said, tightening his grip slightly. "You're gonna see her if I have to break your legs and drag your ass there."

"You don't get it." Rose said, turning around. "I don't think she'll want to see me."

"Rose Surade (sir-rah-day) Darkstar." Ace said, his tone firm. "You're going to see Shadow the very second we rescue Xerneas."

 _With Eon and Yveltal_

"Darkstar?" Yveltal asked. "Isn't that…"

"Yep." Eon asked. "So I guess this is Shadow's older sister. Funny, she never mentioned her."

 _With Ace and Rose_

"Are you threatening me?" Rose asked suspiciously.

"You know it." Ace said, summoning Dark energy to his fists, his tone still one of anger. He released a small bit of his aura, causing Eon and Yveltal to get minor chills.

"Fine then." Rose said, her gentle personality gone as it became firmer and more serious. "I'll humour you."

 _With Eon and Yveltal_

"We need to find Xerneas." Yveltal said. "I feel her life energy depleting slowly."

"Trust me." Eon said, sighing. "It's better if he gets this out of the way. This is how he settles his differences."

"I'll believe that." Yveltal said, chuckling as he remembered the fights he and Ace had had in the past when Yveltal had been evil.

 _With Ace and Rose_

Ace and Rose charged at each other, both of them using powerful punches, Ace using Dark Punch and Rose using a combination Grass and Fire Punch.

Their punches collided in the middle, resulting in a small explosion. They were thrown back about five feet, both landing on their feet.

"So" Ace said, chuckling. "You finally mastered combining types. Congratulations."

"That's not all I did." Rose said, grinning. "Look at your hand."

Ace looked down at his hand to see that a small sprout was shooting from it as well as bubbling purple bubbles.

"Leech Seed and Toxic." Ace said, smiling a little. "So, you're still a support fighter. Good, but unoriginal. Not only do you use that almost every time we fight, I know exactly where you got the idea in the first place."

"I know." Rose said, her eyes lighting up slightly. "Chapter 49 remember." (who gets that reference—it's like the only fic I ever reference)

"Yeah." Ace said. "But, I'm going to win this regardless."

"In about five minutes you'll be too weak to do anything." Rose said.

"Prove it." Ace said, summoning a huge amount of Dark energy to his hand, causing the seeds to wilt and the poison to dissipate.

"How did you do that?" Rose asked, slightly amazed.

"You really think I wouldn't train to resist poison and Leech Seed?" Ace said. "Besides, most of my energy goes to my hands anyway, giving me enough to overwork your poison and Leech Seed."

"Well, then." Rose said, chuckling. "Let's see how well you do with a new move."

She put her hands by her sides, charging an orange-green ball in her hands. Ace charged a black ball in his hands.

"Floral Resonance!" Rose shouted, firing the ball.

"Aura Burst!" Ace shouted, firing his own ball.

The two balls met in the middle, canceling each other out.

 _With Eon and Yveltal_

"It seems she's a match for Ace." Yveltal observed.

"Neither of them is fighting at full power." Eon said curtly.

"What makes you say that?" Yveltal asked.

"They mean too much to each other." Eon said. "They have no reason to go all out yet."

"What does that have to do with it?" Yveltal asked. "You and Ace go all out when you fight each other."

"He hasn't seen her in a long time." Eon said. "Knowing him, they're just seeing how strong each other have become."

 _With Ace and Rose_

"You've still got a long way to go, Ace." Rose said, taking a deep breath, causing her attitude to return to gentle as well as that of a mentor. "But, you've gained a lot of experience in fighting. If I had actually tried, though, you'd be beaten. You still need to work on not being so reckless. That will get you killed one of these days."

"Speaking of reckless" Ace said, calming down. "You know what happened the last time you tried to use a Fire attack."

"I've trained myself." Rose said. "I can combine any types that I'm capable of using."

"How are you capable of using Fire?" Ace asked.

"From Shador." Rose replied. "His genetics allows me to be able to learn Fire attacks."

"You really should come back with us after we finish this mission here." Ace said. "We'd welcome you back."

"I'll consider it." Rose said, looking away from Ace. "If only to see Shadow one last time."

"Good." Ace said, smiling.

"So" Yveltal said, walking back over to where Ace and Rose were. "Let's go find Xerneas now."

"Right." Ace said.

"Xerneas?" Rose asked. "The Lifegiver?"

"Not quite yet." Ace said. "Her mother held that title, but has since died. Xerneas never really received training in that art, so she is nearly incapable."

"Why are you here anyway?" Eon asked.

"I'm trying to stop my Kronos' demonic experiments." Rose said. "He's creating something that could bring the world to its knees."

"What is it?" Eon asked.

"It's called." Rose said seriously. "The Destronix."

 _With Shadow_

"Dead?" Shadow asked, a sudden feeling of horror entering her and chilling her.

"Yes." Giratina said. "You died six months ago. Dakurai killed you."

"Who is Dakurai?" Shadow asked, her voice a little firmer.

"Dakurai" Dialga said, her voice in a near growl. "Is the most powerful and evil opponent we've ever faced. He singlehandedly murdered most of the council in single combat, showing no mercy."

"Eon stood the best chance against him." Dialga said, sighing sadly. "But, even she couldn't handle him. His power was too great for her."

"What about Ace?" Shadow asked, confused. "Shouldn't he have been able to hold his own against this monster with Eon?"

"Ace was already gone." Giratina said, sighing. "And with him Arceus, Palkia, Bianca, Ray, Darkora, Melody…"

"Dakurai." Dialga said, clenching her fist. "That bastard! He'll pay for this!"

"Who's still alive?" Shadow asked, realizing the answer probably wouldn't be very good.

"As far as we know" Giratina said. "Us. The others that are still alive probably are in hiding like us."

"We should go look for them." Shadow said.

"No point." Cela said. "Dakurai can sense us anywhere outside of this cave. He'd find not only us, but them as well."

"I'm going to look." Shadow said. "There's a chance we could make a team capable of fighting this Dakurai monster."

"Wait, Shadow." Giratina said, reaching out for Shadow. But, it was too late. Shadow used Shadow Force, exiting the cave.

"Should we go after her?" Cela asked.

"No." Giratina said, sitting back down. "She's the only one capable of fighting him."

 _With Shadow_

The Dark Empath exited her portal, carefully scanning her surroundings. Sensing nothing she considered dangerous, she continued walking.

Something struck her senses nearly instantly. She walked toward the source to find that the Lake Trio, Uxie, Mesprit, and Azelf, were standing there, watching her. Mewtwo stood with them, all four of them surprised to see her.

"Shadow?!" Uxie nearly shouted. "But, you're supposed to be dead."

"So I've heard." Shadow said. "I'm going to see if I can find any of the other legendaries."

"You can't!" Azelf said, grabbing Shadow's arm, her eyes wide with fear. "You'll die!"

"I'm not afraid." Shadow said, smiling as she rubbed Azelf's hair. "I'll come back. I promise."

"That's what you said the last time." Mesprit said, wrapping her arms tightly around Shadow's waist (Mesprit only goes up to Shadow's breasts in height). "please don't."

Suddenly, Shadow felt a surge of fear coming from a ways away (she can sense emotions). She turned toward it, curious.

"I'm going to see what that was." Shadow said.

"No, don't." Mesprit (who'd felt it too) said, clenching tighter to Shadow's waist.

"I'll be back." Shadow said, hugging Mesprit. "I promise."

"A-Allright." The Emotion Pokémon said, releasing Shadow. Shadow opened up a Shadow Force portal, stepping into it. She disappeared, leaving the Lake Trio and Mewtwo watching as they were before.

Shadow appeared in front of a small child crying and his mother picking him up and cradling him in her arms.

" _Odd."_ Shadow thought to herself. _"The surge of fear is gone. Wonder what caused it."_

Suddenly, she felt a surge of Dark power, far greater than she'd ever felt before. Behind her she could feel the opening of a portal from the shadows.

A wave of true fear washed over her, something she hadn't felt in a long time. It was so terrifying to her that her breathing quickened, her hands began to tremble, and her eyes widened, even without her even seeing what she was up against.

" **Funny."** A dark, chilling voice said from behind her. **"Of all the people I expected to see here, you were the last one. I liked your other outfit better, though, but this one is nice all the same."**

She looked behind her, trying her best not to show her fear, summoning a small amount of Dark power to her hands.

What she saw horrified her more than anything she had ever seen, heard, or felt before.

Dakurai (what she was seeing) was wearing a light suit of armor so dark that it seemed to emanate its own darkness and fear. His long, white hair went down a little past his shoulders. His blood red eyes emanated evil and terror. But, it was his face that horrified Shadow the most.

His face was that of Ace Hunter.

 _With Ace, Eon, Yveltal, and Rose_

"Destronix?" Ace asked. "What's that?"

"I'll explain as we go." Rose said. "First, we need to get into this compartment."

"On it." Ace said, walking up to the panel. He punched it, sending a pulse of Dark energy through it. A panel in the wall opened up, revealing a set of stairs. The four of them walked down the stairs, exiting them in a long corridor.

"I can sense Xerneas' energy stronger here." Yveltal said, quickening his pace, only to be stopped by Ace.

"Hold it, flyboy." Ace said. "We have no idea what's down here, so let's be on our guard."

"Got it." Yveltal said.

The four of them continued down the corridor until Rose stopped and looked at the wall.

"There's something on the other side of this wall." She said, summoning a small amount of power into her hands. She launched the power in the form of a Seed Bomb that blew open the wall, revealing rows of synthoids, each of them in a state of hibernation. Their arms were held above their heads by large metal cuffs.

"Synthoids." Rose breathed.

"So, wait" Yveltal asked. "What's the difference between a synthoid and like a normal android?"

"Well" Rose explained. "An android is still machine, but a synthoid is so humanlike that most believe themselves to be human. They usually have humanlike skin over their internal machine parts, kind of like a Terminator. Their emotions are as sensitive as a human's, ranging from happiness to anger and everything in between. They can even have loyalty. And, it's not programmable; they just learn it. An android has to be programmed with their emotions and they still aren't perfect, but a synthoid is a highly advanced machine, learning traits simply from observing them. They even can feel pain, discomfort, and drowsiness like humans. They require sleep and food as well and can perform certain other, um, activities that humans can, several of which I'll not go into."

"Really now?" Yveltal asked, intrigued. "So, they're capable of carrying children if they're female?"

"If you were almost anyone else" Eon said. "I'd hit you for being perverted. But that is an interesting question to bring up."

"I've never really found out." Rose said, shrugging. "But, it wouldn't surprise me if they could."

"What's up with this one?" Eon asked, looking at a female synthoid that was moving instead of being in the sort of hibernation that the other synthoids were in.

Parts of her skin were missing and her wires could be seen, particularly on her eye, chest, and limb areas. She seemed to be in pain and her eyes were clenched shut, her body writhing.

"Ace, we've got to do something." Rose begged the Nightmare Demon. "She's hurting."

"I don't know how to release the cuffs." Ace said. "They might be a life support system."

"We've got to do something." Rose said. Ace shrugged, pulling off the cuffs that restrained the synthoid to them, breaking them and causing her to fall.

Ace caught her, holding her bridal style.

"Th-thank you." The synthoid said, slumping over in Ace's arms, unconscious and sleeping peacefully, in much less pain.

"There's something familiar about this synthoid." Ace said, looking at the synthoid female he held in his arms. Suddenly, it hit him.

"This is the synthoid that attacked Alamos Town." Ace said. Though, in spite of saying it, he still held the synthoid, protectively, as if he felt he could prevent her further harm. "Kortella was her name, I believe."

"Then why are you still holding her like that?" Yveltal asked. "As if she's your child or something?"

"I didn't damage her this badly." Ace said. "Someone else did this to her. I'm assuming Kronos."

"Why would he damage his own creation?" Yveltal asked.

"Clearly, you've never met him before." Rose said, looking for any other signs of movement.

"Fair enough." Yveltal said.

"Let's keep going and find Xerneas." Ace said. "Mewtwo's pretty good with machines, so I think he can repair her."

"That's good." Rose said. "After we find Xerneas, can you get us out of here fast?"

"I learned Shadow Force a few years back." Ace said. "That'll get us out of here."

"Right." Rose said. "We might need it."

"By the way" Ace said, still holding Kortella. "What's this 'Destronix' you mentioned earlier?"

"Destronix" Rose said, sighing. "is a term that means 'true destroyer' or 'ultimate destroyer'. I discovered the plans for it a while back and traced them here. It's a synthoid more powerful than any other, capable of destroying worlds if truly built correctly."

"That sounds bad." Yveltal said. "We definitely need to stop it."

"Correct." Rose said. "If we don't destroy any traces of it, the world would be at stake."

"Yep, definitely bad." Yveltal concurred.

At that moment, Kortella began to stir. She looked up at Ace, realizing who he was.

"Y-you're the guy I fought in Alamos Town." She said weakly, straining herself to say it. "Why are you helping me?"

"I've seen other people suffer before and was powerless to stop it." Ace said, his expression turning to sorrow. "Plus, you don't seem like that bad of a person."

"B-but I almost destroyed Alamos Town." Kortella said, confused. "How can you not hate me for that?"

"You didn't." Ace said. "And I could tell you didn't want to."

"What makes you say that?" Kortella asked, slightly shocked.

"You had dozens of chances to destroy Alamos Town." Ace said, looking at the synthoid. "Even when I had gotten there, you still had many chances. You knew them, but you didn't take a single one. That's also why I held back against you when we fought."

"So" Eon asked. "How did you get so badly damaged? If Ace was gonna do that to you, he'd have ripped out a few parts with it. Also, he said he held back, which generally means he beat you enough to beat you but not damage you severely."

"I was unfit for service." Kortella said, shaking a little. Ace's eyes widened in shock and anger at the realization of what she was implying as did Rose's. "I was punished and tossed in here, but wasn't put into hibernation so I could feel my failure."

"That's awful." Rose said, covering her mouth. "That's inhumane. But, it's okay now. We'll get you fixed up and back to normal."

"Th-thank you." Kortella said, shifting her position in Ace's arms to get comfortable. She quickly fell back asleep, her face content.

"Let's keep going." Yveltal said, moving ahead. "I sense Xerneas is forward. We need to get her and leave here before something bad happens to her."

"Agreed." Ace, Eon, and Rose said, following the Destruction God.

The five of them made their way down the hall until it split into three. They looked down the halls, trying to figure out which way was the right way.

"So" Ace said, looking at Yveltal. "Can you still sense Xerneas?"

"No" Yveltal said. Suddenly, the Destruction God got a surge of pain in his head.

"Xerneas!" he shouted, running ahead down the left pathway. The others followed him, moving as fast as they possibly could.

The hallway ended in a large, open room. There were a couple tables on the far wall, but they were unoccupied. On a panel on the wall, however, was Xerneas. Various tubes and sensors were attached to her and she seemed to be getting electrocuted and drained of her power. She screamed and writhed in pain as her energy flowed forcefully from her body into some other machine on the side of the room.

"Xerneas!" Yveltal cried, running toward his sister, only to be stopped by Eon holding her arm out to stop his motion.

"Don't be so naïve." She said. "It's clearly a trap."

"She's being hurt!" Yveltal said, almost punching Eon in the face in his anger. "What do you expect me to do?"

"Wait until we can figure out if there's an easier way to do this." Ace said.

"Oh, trust me, Hunter" came the voice from up above them. They looked up to see Dr. Kronos with a strange, human shaped object. "There is no easy way to do this."

 _With Shadow_

"Ace?!" Shadow said, covering her mouth in shock. "How are you Dakurai?!"

" **It's my middle name."** 'Ace'—Dakurai—said, grinning slightly. **"It means 'Dark Warrior'. It's like how your middle name (Sanaito) means 'Gracious Lady'."**

"That doesn't answer the question." Shadow said, stepping backwards from the man who she referred to as her best friend.

" **Well"** Dakurai (A/N-I'm going to address this Ace as Dakurai from now on) said, shrugging and grinning evilly. **"The power of Darkness is a pretty corruptible thing. If you use it enough, you become more and more like it."**

"But, you normally have control over your Dark powers." Shadow said. "What happened to you?"

" **They didn't tell you a damn thing, did they?!"** Ace said, grinning once again, his eyes flashing. **"It figures. They never did want to acknowledge my transformation. They refer to me as Dakurai for the same reason. I'm also betting they didn't tell you how you died either, did they?"**

"No." Shadow said, looking down.

"Well" Dakurai said, moving closer to Shadow with a ghostly motion and grabbing her chin, gently, as if her were inspecting her. Shadow flinched back, Dakurai's very aura making her feel nauseous.

" **It seems you're younger than the Shadow I killed."** Dakurai laughed. **"Which is good. You actually might put up more of a fight than she did."**

"Why did you kill the legendaries?" Shadow asked, for the first time in her life being afraid of her best friend—no, this wasn't him; not anymore.

" **For fun."** Dakurai said, chuckling. **"But, you weren't as fun to kill."**

"Why is that?" Shadow asked.

" **Because you didn't put up a fight."** Dakurai said, a small hint of disgust in his voice. **"Even before I ripped your heart out."**

Shadow's eyes widened in horror at the statement.

" **What?"** Dakurai asked, grinning once again. **"Didn't think I had the guts to do it? If you had put up a fight, it might not have come to it."**

"What are you?" Shadow asked, truly not believing that this could be Ace.

" **Darkness."** Dakurai said, his voice in a whisper, making it sound all the more chilling.

" **It's ironic though."** Dakurai said, grabbing Shadow by the shoulder and staring into her eyes, Shadow transfixed by his out of fear and some internal conflict. **"I figured that you'd be the only one to give me a fight. Though, I never expected a younger Shadow, I did think it would be us two Kyuryoon duking it out; yin and yang, good and evil, human and demon, Dark and—um—Darker. When the Shadow I know didn't put up a fight, I was disappointed. All she did was try to convince me to be less evil and turn from the Darkness, but obviously, you can guess where that got her."**

"How many?" Shadow asked as Dakurai released her.

" **What?"** Dakurai asked, confused as to what Shadow was referring to.

"How many legendaries did you kill?" Shadow asked, a tear coming to her eyes.

" **All that weren't in Turnback Cave."** Dakurai said. **"I know they're hiding out there. But, I don't want to fight them unless they come to me. They fight harder that way. It's no fun if it's not a good fight."**

It was at this point that Shadow was convinced that this monster was actually Ace Hunter at one point.

" **I look forward to our battle."** Dakurai said, grabbing Shadow by the back of the head and putting two fingers to her forehead. An image flashed in her mind, then disappeared, but she could remember it.

" **That's where we will fight."** Dakurai said, releasing Shadow. **"There we can unleash our full powers and not worry about casualties (I don't care, but I know you do)."**

"That's…" Shadow said, realizing where Dakurai wanted them to fight.

" **That's not going to bring up bad memories, is it?"** Dakurai asked. **"I just think it seems fitting for the two most powerful Dark types to fight on the island of the Darkness."**

Dakurai summoned a portal of pure black shadows. Pure evil seemed to radiate from it, causing Shadow to get chills.

" **I'll give you some time to prepare."** Dakurai said, stepping into the portal. **"You know, steel your nerves and psych yourself up and all that sh!t."**

As the True Nightmare Demon left, Shadow simply looked where the portal had been. She then dropped to her knees, beginning to cry.

* * *

Well, it seems that there's gonna be two fights. Hope they can get through these. And it seems that there's a new character, Rose, introduced. She looks pretty badass (even though she's a gentle person). Her pic's up on deviantart under the same username as this account, BatmanRules256. She was an idea submitted to me by Venatorix on this site.

Next Chapter: Battle Lines.


	5. Separate Paths Part Two: Battle Lines

Chapter 4: Separate Paths Part Two: Battle Lines

 _Previously: (note: in this 'previously', stuff for Shadow will be_ _underlined_ _, while stuff for Ace, Eon, Yveltal, and Rose will be regular text due to the two different stories going on simultaneously)_

 _-"This house seems odd."_

" _This is where Xerneas' energy is strongest."_

 _-_ _Shadow! You came back!"_

" _Where did I go?"_

" _You went to…"_

 _-_ _Shadow. You're supposed to be dead."_

 _-"Who are you and what are you doing here?"_

" _My name is Rose."_

 _-"Where the hell were you?! I told her you weren't coming back!"_

 _-"Who is this?"_

" _I don't know."_

 _-"Rose Surade Darkstar!"_

" _Are you challenging me?"_

" _You know it."_

" _Fine then. I'll humour you."_

 _-"_ _Dead?!"_

" _Yes. Dakurai killed you."_

" _Who's Dakurai?"_

 _-"Synthoids."_

" _Isn't that the one who attacked Alamos? Kortella, wasn't it?"_

 _-"Why are you helping her like that?"_

" _No one should suffer like that."_

 _-"There's Xerneas!"_

" _It's obviously a trap."_

" _Correct you are."_

 _-"_ _Ace?! You're Dakurai?"_

" _What? Surprised? You really are supposed to be dead."_

 _-"This place is where we should fight. I hope to see you there."_

* * *

 **Pokémon Azure Light 2: Chapter Four: Separate Paths Part 2: Battle Lines**

 _With Ace, Eon, Yveltal, Kortella, and Rose_

"Kronos, you bastard!" Ace shouted as the man made it to the same level as him, the human shaped object still behind him. He pushed a button on his lab coat, which caused the table Xerneas was strapped to disappear, Xerneas with it.

"Xerneas!" Yveltal shouted, moving toward where Xerneas was, only to get stopped by Eon once again.

"Your friend has been moved to a different location in the lab" Kronos said, grinning. "But, while you're here, why not have some fun with my newest synthoid. I call it the Destronix."

The human shaped object stood up, the small shell around it breaking. It was a synthoid in golden battle armor, similar in composition to what Kortella had worn two months ago with grey gloves. He had golden colored boots on. He had white hair that went down to his shoulders and his eyes were golden.

Rose paled slightly at the sight of the synthoid. She had seen what such a monster was capable of firsthand.

"So." The synthoid said, grinning slightly. "Who's first?"

"Destronix" Kronos said, pointing at them. "Destroy them. Including the other synthoid."

"Eon" Ace said to his best friend.

"Yeah." Eon said, tensing up. Ace handed Kortella, still unconscious, to Eon, Eon looking at her confused.

"Eon, listen carefully." Ace said, looking at Yveltal as well. "You and Yveltal take Kortella, find Xerneas, and leave this place."

"What about you and Rose?" Eon asked.

"We're gonna take care of Android 23 here." Ace said, grinning himself.

"I wanna fight too!" Eon almost whined.

"Do you really think Yveltal can carry both Xerneas and Kortella?" Ace asked.

"Fine." Eon grumbled.

"Thanks." Ace said, turning back to face Destronix.

"Oh, Ace?" Eon asked.

"Yeah." Ace said, looking back at the Eon Goddess.

"Beat him with an inch of his life." Eon said, a near sinister grin on her face as she and Yveltal left the room, running down the hall. "And hang him up by his wires!"

"Was that a reference to something?" Rose asked.

"Yep." Ace said, getting into a fighting position.

"Huh." Rose said, also getting into a fighting position.

 _With Eon, Kortella, and Yveltal_

"So" Yveltal said as they ran down the hall. "You complied pretty quickly. You're normally the type to never say no to a challenge."

"Ace asked me to do this." Eon said. "Usually he has better insight into this stuff. Plus, this seemed like a personal thing."

"Personal?" Yveltal asked.

"Yeah." Eon said. "Both him and Rose apparently have had confrontations with him. They have some beef with him. I don't, so I'll let them handle this while we escort our two charges out of here."

"That's actually pretty noble." Yveltal said. "I guess you're not the battle crazed girl you were when we first met."

"Funny" Eon said, chuckling. "That's what N said on our last date."

"Who's N?" Yveltal asked.

"My boyfriend." Eon said.

"Wow." Yveltal said, truly surprised. "I really need to hang out with you guys more. I know almost nothing about you guys. Though, I really wasn't concerned when I was evil."

"Well, there's a first time for everything." Eon said. "By the way, can you sense Xerneas' energy still?"

"Yeah." Yveltal said, nodding. "It's really close to here."

As the two of them neared where Yveltal could sense Xerneas, two synthoids dropped down to the floor in front of them.

One was a female in a red battle suit and the other was a male in a green battle suit. Both had grey eyes. The female had red hair and the male had yellow hair.

"Halt." They both said. "You're not going any farther. Surrender and hand over the synthoid."

"Think we can take 'em both?" Eon asked, an evil grin on her face as she gently placed Kortella on the ground and cracked her knuckles.

"Have at it." Yveltal said, picking Kortella up. "I'll take care of blondie here."

"Right." Eon said as she summoned Fire to her hands. The two synthoids got into battle positions as they prepared to fight the Eon Goddess.

 _With Shadow_

Shadow must have cried for a good twenty minutes before she finally stood up, dried her eyes and summoned a Shadow Force portal back to Turnback Cave.

She appeared in front of Giratina, the Death God surprised to see her.

"Why?" was all Shadow said, tears in her eyes.

"Why what?" Giratina asked, unsure what the Dark Empath could mean.

"Why didn't you tell me Ace was Dakurai?" Shadow said, her voice cracking slightly and her anger beginning to rise.

"Would you have believed me if I had?" Giratina asked, his tone soft.

Shadow simply looked at him, relaxing and her gaze softening.

"No." she said quietly. "No, I wouldn't have."

"Shadow." Giratina said, putting his armored hand on her shoulder. "Listen. We didn't want to accept it either. That's the reason we call him Dakurai. So we don't have to truly acknowledge it and we can fight him with no regrets."

"I understand." Shadow said, grabbing Giratina around the waist and hugging him, crying into his armored shoulder. "But, I really don't want to."

Giratina simply hugged Shadow back, truly trying to understand her conflicted feelings.

"What happened out there?" Giratina asked finally.

"I" Shadow said, her voice still very quiet. "I met him. He said he wanted to have a battle with me. He said something about the irony of the two of us fighting."

"Yeah" Giratina said. "He said something about that when he and I last clashed. So, are you going to fight him?"

"I—I guess I have to." Shadow said. "But, I really don't want to."

"Well, whatever you do" Giratina said. "Know we're rooting for you."

"Thanks." Shadow said. She then open opened a Shadow Force portal and stepped into it.

She exited the portal on the island that Dakurai had shown her, the True Nightmare Demon facing away from her.

" **I'm surprised you're here this early."** He said, not turning around. **"I thought you'd take longer to yell at Giratina for not telling you."**

"You waited this whole time?" Shadow asked.

" **Just like the final boss of any video game."** Dakurai said, turning around at this point. **"So, shall we begin?"**

"I guess." Shadow said, steeling her nerves for the battle she was about to face. The two of them got into fighting positions, ready to strike at each other at a moment's notice.

 _With Ace and Rose_

"So" Kronos said, scanning his two opponents. "You two will face my Destronix?"

"That's right, you Terminator rip-off." Ace said, grinning slightly. "We're here to put a stop to Kronos' plans."

"Really now?" Kronos said, scanning what he was up against.

"Scanning" Destronix said, his voice robotic almost. "Targets confirmed. Ace Hunter: Current power level: two hundred thousand; current threat level: average; max power level: unknown; max threat level: unknown, and Rose Darkstar: Current power level: two hundred fifty thousand; current threat level: average; max power level: unknown; max threat level: unknown. Caution implemented."

"Bring it on, synthoid." Rose said, her former gentleness gone as her battle instinct took over. "We're here to destroy you."

"Analysis complete." Destronix said, getting into a fighting position of sorts. "Threat level high. Extreme caution implemented."

Ace and Rose both summoned their respective energies to their hands, lunging forward for two devastating punches.

However, Destronix caught them with little effort, chuckling.

"Did you really think it would be that easy?" he asked. He then slammed their heads together, resulting in a resounding 'crack'.

"Wait a minute!" Kronos said under his breath. "I thought I removed his human capabilities. He shouldn't be this independent."

"Destronix!" Kronos shouted. "You aren't supposed to fight like that! Use your counter measures!"

"Sorry, doc." Destronix said, firing a beam of white energy at Kronos. "I'm not taking your orders anymore. Oh, and this is for the harm you inflicted upon Kortella, which you had no right to do."

Kronos managed to use Teleport just before the beam hit him, transmitting to a different location.

"Now that the doctor's out" Destronix said, grinning. "We can begin our fight anew. And after this, I'll deal with your friends as well."

Ace and Rose stood up, once again charging forward with energy infused punches.

"This again?" Destronix asked, chuckling. "Well, if you insist."

He reached out to catch the punches once again, but before he could, Ace and Rose switched positions and roundhouse kicked the synthoid in the sides. Destronix flinched from the blows, but was able to grab Ace's leg and deliver a sharp blow to it, nearly breaking it.

Rose retaliated by shoving an Energy Ball into Destronix's face. The force of the blow knocked him back about five feet and onto his back.

Rose then ran over to Ace, helping him stand.

"Are you allright?" she asked, worried.

"I've been hit way harder." Ace said, seemingly fine, more pissed off than hurt. "Let's take this guy out so we can meet up with Eon and Yveltal."

"Oh, don't worry." Destronix said, standing up, white energy in his hands. "They'll see you soon. In the afterlife. Along with anyone else who gets in my way."

"Not if we can say anything about it!" Ace shouted, lunging toward Destronix, Dark energy in his hands. He brought them together, thrusting them forward and releasing the Dark energy in his hands right at Destronix.

"Dark Pulse!" he shouted, a large beam, not unlike a Kamehameha, struck Destronix in the chest, damaging him. Ace then followed up with a flurry of Dark infused punches to Destronix's face, causing the synthoid to smash into the wall.

"That was pretty good." Destronix said, standing up. "I underestimated you, Hunter. You really are the one who I was warned about by the other synthoids. This is going to be the most explosive battle ever."

"Speak for yourself." Rose said, moving toward Destronix with speed near unseen and slicing him across the chest with a Flaming Leaf Blade.

"So, you're a Combiner?" Destronix said with amusement. "Well, it seems I've underestimated both of you."

"Right you have!" Rose shouted, firing a large burst of Poison energy at Destronix.

The synthoid, however, dodged the attack, moving behind Rose and swinging his arm around to slam into her head.

"But" Destronix said, smirking. "It seems you've both underestimated me as well."

"A mistake I won't make again." Ace said, both he and Rose charging up powerful balls of energy, Ace using Dark and Rose using Grass and Poison.

They both fired the blasts at Destronix, both of them hitting him, causing an explosion and a huge smoke cloud.

Ace and Rose finished firing their energy blasts, both of them panting. Even though they hadn't been fighting for very long, fighting an opponent like Destronix seemed to be taking its toll on them. They had already use a good deal of energy just to deal what seemed like nonexistent damage to the synthoid monster.

"Well" Ace panted, looking at his old friend. "I think we did it."

"Yeah." Rose said, also panting as she walked over to Ace. "I guess we did."

"Oh, I wouldn't go that far." A voice came from the smoke. Ace and Rose tensed, knowing their fight was just beginning.

 _With Yveltal, Eon, and Kortella_

"You think you can take both of us on, Multius?" the male synthoid said, scoffing as he said it.

"Pretty much." Eon said, grinning.

"Pretty big talk coming from the one who's showed up by an introvert." The female synthoid scoffed.

"Well, that just means" Eon said, her voice becoming like a growl mixed with a chuckle. "That the ass kicking I'm going to give you is that much less than the one she'd give you."

"Prove it." The female synthoid said, grinning.

Eon answered the synthoid's challenge by moving quickly up to her, punching her with the force of a wrecking ball. The female synthoid flew back into the wall behind her, making a large crater in it.

"So" the male synthoid said, stepping in front of Eon. "You're tougher than you look. But, we're near equal in power to Ace Hunter. You can't hope to match our kind of power."

"Funny." Eon said, a Fire sparking in her eyes and an evil grin on her lips. She summoned Fire to her hands, its color pure white. "So am I."

Eon then got into a power up pose, shouting and releasing a good deal of her energy. The entire hallway, being fairly small, heated up like a sauna from her Fire aura.

The synthoids (and Yveltal) looked on at the Eon Goddess in shock.

"How are you this much more powerful?!" they shouted. "We have your max power level registered at fifteen million!"

"Power levels are bullsh!t!" Eon shouted, Supermon punching the female synthoid through the chest, unleashing a huge amount of Fire energy outward from her arm, causing the synthoid to both melt and explode at the same time.

Eon then turned toward the male synthoid, who was shocked that Eon had managed to take out his partner so fast.

"So" she said in an evil tone, holding out her hand, which was coated in flames. "Do you want to beg my mom for forgiveness? 'Cause I don't think you've got a prayer?"

The synthoid male's eyes widened as white hot flames turned his body in to a smoldering pile of metal. Yveltal just stared in shock.

Eon took some deep breaths, calming herself down and lowering her power level. As a result, the room cooled down.

"What?" she said, turning to Yveltal, who was staring, sweating and open-mouthed.

"That was brutal." He said.

"Well, it was necessary." Eon said. "those guys were blocking us from getting to Xerneas."

Kortella began to stir in Yveltal's arms at this point. The synthoid yawned and stretched her arms as if she were sleeping, looking up at Yveltal.

"You're not the one that I saw before." She said in a slightly less injured voice as she moved to stand on her feet. "Where are he and the Roserade woman? Rose, was it?"

"He's busy right now." Yveltal said, placing Kortella's feet on the ground and helping her obtain her balance. "Me and Eon here are taking you to find my sister and escape."

"Where is he?" Kortella asked, looking back in the direction they had come from. "I can sense him still."

"He's fighting Destronix." Eon said. "Lucky bastard."

"Destronix?!" Kortella said, panic entering her voice. "He's awake?!"

"Yeah." Eon said. "I wanted to fight him, but Ace was all like 'Yveltal can't carry two people at once'."

"He was protecting you." Kortella said, clenching a damaged fist. "Destronix isn't someone to take lightly."

"What's so bad about this Destronix anyway?" Eon asked. "He didn't seem like such a tough guy."

"You clearly underestimate him." Kortella said quietly. "He's the most powerful opponent your friend will ever face."

"He's battled synthoids before." Yveltal said. "What's so different about this one?"

"All of the synthoids here" Kortella began to explain. "were specifically designed to fight legendaries, with all of them having the ultimate goal of fighting and defeating Ace Hunter. I am the most powerful of all those synthoids and look what happened to me when I tried to take him on. Destronix was created specifically to take on beings as powerful as Ace Hunter, which he's undoubtedly doing right now."

"But, Ace said he didn't damage you that badly." Yveltal said.

"He didn't." Kortella said, looking down at the ground. "Kronos did."

"We still don't know why he did that." Eon said.

"For two reasons actually." Kortella said quietly. "The first was to see my fighting data and see how to improve it. Most synthoids keep their data inside and use it to strengthen themselves and become more powerful, adapting to their opponents. Kronos removed mine, but failed to remove a certain component of it, which allows my data to adapt more, but it cannot be analyzed by an external source without direct connection, something similar happening to my memory chip. The second reason was that he wanted to 'teach me the true price of failure'. Though, all he has taught me now I that I no longer have a shred of loyalty to him."

"I thought he had something that would help his synthoids be more submissive to him." Eon said, thinking.

"He did." Kortella said. "However, both mine and Destronix's malfunctioned, both of them undetectable. Destronix and I became very good friends over time and he and I even began to show true human emotions. However, after seeing the kind of monster Kronos was, he began to take a darker turn. I don't really want to talk about it if you don't mind."

"Fair enough." Eon said. "We understand. So, by any chance, do you know where Xerneas is being kept? We just need to get her and then we'll head home where a good friend of ours can repair you."

"The Lifegiver?" Kortella asked. "I think so. Follow me and I'll show you."

Kortella began walking down the hallway, Eon and Yveltal following close behind her.

 _With Shadow_

Shadow and Dakurai charged at each other, Dark energy in their fists. Their fists collided in the middle of them, causing a huge surge of energy to be emitted from the point of impact. Both of them pushed as hard as they could, hoping for an advantage in which they could land a powerful blow on each other. The energy began to cause cracks in the ground they stood on, eventually forcing them apart and causing them to change positions.

" **You're good, Shadow."** Dakurai said, chuckling. **"I didn't expect this Shadow from the past to be so much trouble for me."**

"Trust me." Shadow said, standing firm. "The worst thing you could do right now is underestimate me. I'm going to make you pay for those you've hurt and killed."

" **Trust me."** Dakurai said, an evil grin on his face. **"You'll be here for a long time if that's your goal. I've killed a lot (and I do mean a lot) of people even in the six months you've been dead."**

"Well, your killing streak stops here." Shadow said, summoning more Dark energy to her hands and getting into a fighting position.

They lunged toward each other once again, this time stopping about ten feet from each other and firing huge beams of Dark energy at each other. The beams collided, creating a ball of purely black energy. Dakurai and Shadow continued pouring energy into the beams, the force of the beams themselves beginning to push them back. They planted their feet and put more energy into their blasts.

After about two more minutes, the energy ball detonated, forcing the two of them backwards.

" **So"** Dakurai said, chuckling. **"you're taking advantage of the boost we get from the very atmosphere of this island."**

"So that's why you wanted us to fight here." Shadow said, panting, clenching her fists reflexively.

" **Yes."** Dakurai said, grinning. **"We get a significant boost from the Dark atmosphere of this island. Our Dark powers increase threefold."**

"It won't make a difference." Shadow said. "I will stop you."

" **You're ironically eager to fight the person you gave your heart to."** Dakurai said, smirking.

"You may have been him once." Shadow said, pulling back for a punch. "But, you are nothing like him now."

" **Well, it seems like you've got quite a bit to learn, Shadow."** Dakurai said, summoning Dark powers to his hands. **"Allow me to teach you."**

Dakurai lunged at Shadow, landing a powerful Dark Punch on her face and knocking her back about twenty feet. Shadow hit the ground about three times before stopping.

She stood up, blocking another punch from Dakurai and landing her own.

The two of them traded massive blows, neither gaining an advantage.

However, after about five minutes, Shadow began to get tired, losing energy sort of quickly. Dakurai took heavy advantage of this loss, punching her as hard as he could in the face. As she flew backwards, he used his speed to move behind her and punch her in the chest, causing her direction to change to straight down, her impact with the ground hard enough to create a large crater and knock the wind out of her.

Shadow's vision was going a little blurry, her consciousness starting to fade. Dakurai stood over her, grinning.

" **You know, Shadow."** Dakurai said, grinning. **"I actually expected you to last a little bit longer against me, but I guess you're as weak as I expected."**

"Well, then." Shadow said, fighting to stay conscious. "Try this on for size."

Shadow leapt up at Dakurai, the latter not expecting it at all. She grabbed him around the neck, embracing him as she moved closer to him, Dakurai's expression turning to confused.

Shadow then kissed him, Dakurai's expression turning to shock. After about thirty seconds, Shadow released Dakurai, stepping back about five feet.

" **I don't know if you're trying to cause my inner good to break out or not."** Dakurai said, staring at Shadow. **"But, damn."**

Shadow then punched Dakurai in the face, sending him flying. He hit the ground hard and stood up, Dark energy in his fists.

" **How are you hitting me harder than you were two minutes ago?!"** he asked. **"I almost beat you, but somehow you got stronger."**

Dakurai thought for a second. Suddenly, realization came to his eyes.

" **you sneaky devil."** He said, chuckling. **"You used Draining Kiss on me. Though, I'm sure the only reason you did was because I'm still sort of Ace Hunter."**

"You won't kill anyone else." Shadow said. "I'm going to stop you here and now. I know now that you're not even Ace Hunter at all, body or mind."

" **What made you come to that conclusion?"** Dakurai asked, chuckling. **"If you say 'the taste of my lips' I'll chalk it up to petty obsession."**

"The real Ace Hunter" Shadow said, firing a powerful Dark Blast into Dakurai's face, causing him to flinch. Shadow then followed it up with four Dark Claws and a Dark Punch. "Would have noticed that it wasn't a romantic kiss, even if the boost of this island caused him to not feel the drain of his power. And, yeah, kinda the taste of your lips (A/N: this is said much quieter)."

" **That's what you were going for?"** Dakurai asked, firing a Dark Blast, which Shadow deflected by swatting it away. **"Well, it's better than what I was thinking."**

"You're radiating too much Nightmare energy to be Ace Hunter." Shadow said. "You're some sort of imposter. The only time I've ever felt this much Darkness was from when I have nightmares."

"What are you gonna do about it?" Dakurai asked.

"Kyuryoon Black Dragon Shadow Punch!" Shadow shouted, using her most powerful move on Dakurai, causing him to fly across the island.

Dakurai then got up, chuckling, his body switching (considerate like glitching—one example would be like King Candy near the end of Wreck It Ralph) between his current forme and another one. He walked over to Shadow, who was panting, her energy used up from the Kyuryoon Black Dragon Shadow Punch.

" **Took you long enough."** He said, snapping his fingers. Instantly, shadowy tendrils wrapped themselves around Shadow, tying her legs together and pinning her arms by her sides.

"What the hell?!" Shadow said, struggling to escape the binds which held her fast. Eventually she dropped to her knees, still struggling to break the shadow tendrils, but to no avail. Another shadow tendril wrapped around her mouth, effectively gagging her.

Dakurai then changed forme. His body shifted to that of a woman, but there was something odd about this woman: she looked exactly like Shadow, save her white hair with red highlights along with darker colored eyes.

" **Confused?"** The woman asked, kneeling down in front of Shadow, smirking at the Dark Empath, who was very shocked to find that Dakurai had disguised herself as Ace Hunter. Her voice had changed from Ace's to a distorted version of Shadow's own voice. **"Well, it's simple, really: We're not in the future. We're in the one place I can really hurt you: your mind."**

 _With Eon, Kortella, and Yveltal_

"Are you sure you know the way to get to Xerneas?" Yveltal asked Kortella.

"My external shell and synthetic skin is damaged." Kortella said, cutting Yveltal off right there with a tone that said 'I'm not gonna take sh!t from you'. "My memory core, however, as well as my internally inputted schematics and blueprints of this place are not."

"I think she's saying that she knows the way." Eon said, snickering as she elbowed Yveltal gently in the arm.

"Right." Yveltal said, getting the point. "I gathered that."

"We're here." Kortella said, turning left into a room that held several tables. On one of them was Xerneas, still strapped down and writhing in pain from the energy being extracted from her. Since they were closer up, they could see that she was much paler, both in skin and hair.

"Xerneas!" Yveltal shouted, running over to his sister, unstrapping her and attempting to pull the devices attached to her off of her, but his hand was grabbed by Kortella.

"The energy is still being drained from her." The synthoid said, pointing at the large machine which the devices led from. "If you remove the devices now, not only will she suffer from shock and potentially die from it, she will most likely not ever be back up to full strength if she survives."

"Then what do we do?" Yveltal asked, trying to figure out whether or not he could trust the synthoid girl.

"We need to reverse the flow of the energy." Kortella said, walking over to the machine and pushing a few buttons.

A visible change came over both the machine and Xerneas as the energy being drained from Xerneas into the machine reversed its flow, moving back into its rightful owner. After a decent amount of energy was returned to Xerneas, her color began to return, both to her skin and hair. After more energy returned, she opened her eyes, blinking them to adjust to the light.

"Yveltal?" she asked, looking up at her brother. "Is that you?"

"Yep." Yveltal said. "After you regain enough energy, we're going home."

"Hey, Eon." Xerneas said, waving to the Eon Goddess.

"'Sup." Eon said, grinning.

"The energy transfer should be complete in about two minutes." Kortella said, eyeing the instrument panels. "Until then we should wait."

"Who's that?" Xerneas asked, currently too weak to turn her head.

"That's Kortella." Eon said, pointing at the synthoid. "She's with us."

"Okay." Xerneas said, nodding.

"Energy transfer complete." Kortella said, looking at the dials. "We can go now."

"Right." Yveltal said, picking his sister up bridal style.

"Why, Yveltal." Xerneas said, a teasing tone and mock embarrassment in her voice. "I think it's a bit soon."

"Whatever, sis." Yveltal said, rolling his eyes. "Which way out of here, Kortella?"

"Follow me!" Kortella said, heading out a door, the others following.

The four of them of them made their way down the hall, moving slightly quicker.

Suddenly, alarms began to sound all around them, red lights flashing. Kortella looked behind them in alarm, taking off with a running start, hurriedly beckoning the others to follow.

"What's going on?!" Eon shouted as they ran down the hallway.

"The self-destruct has been activated." Kortella said. "It only happens when a significant amount of damage has been sustained in the grand hall, which is where Ace, Rose, and Destronix are fighting."

"How big is the explosion?" Eon asked.

"Big enough to take out this building and any around it." Kortella said, the statement causing Eon, Yveltal, and Xerneas' eyes to widen.

"Well, let's go the shorter way." Yveltal said, shifting Xerneas into a one-handed grip and throwing his hand out, a ghostly energy leaving his hand. The energy made contact with the wall, expanding to six feet in diameter. The vortex inside swirled with mixtures of purple and black.

"What's that?" Kortella asked, amazed by the vortex.

"That, my friend." Yveltal said, showing a small hint of pride. "Is Phantom Force. With it, we can travel large distances in mere seconds."

"So, it's like Shadow Force?" Kortella asked. "I read up on it after I saw Ace use it once. It must be really awesome, traveling through the Distortion World."

"Well" Yveltal said, dragging out the word a little. "This doesn't actually travel through the Distortion World. It travels through some other dimension and isn't as powerful or advanced as Shadow Force. Unfortunately, however, I am incapable of using Shadow Force. In fact, I don't know how Ace or Shadow could use Shadow Force either. It's supposed to be a move limited to Giratina's family line and species."

"Who's Shadow?" Kortella asked.

"Shadow" Eon said, a mischievous grin on her face. "Is Ace's girlfriend. We love to tease them about it because they ."

"Sounds fun." Kortella said, a similar smile appearing on her face as she rubbed her hands together. "This will be my revenge for the fight me and Ace had a few months ago."

"That's the spirit." Yveltal said.

"Why do you tease him about it?" Xerneas asked Yveltal, getting out of his arms and standing shakily on the ground, Yveltal putting his arm around her to steady her. "You don't even have a girlfriend."

"It's fun." Yveltal said. "But, back to Shadow Force, I don't know how Ace can learn Shadow Force."

"He's a master of the shadows." Eon pointed out. "As is Shadow."

"I guess that makes sense." Yveltal said as they all hurried through the Phantom Force, the vortex closing behind them as they exited it, back in the Hall of Origins.

"Where'd you guys come from?" Mewtwo, who had just walked by, asked. "And who's this synthoid?"

"This is Kortella." Eon introduced the synthoid girl, who waved. "She's in need of repairs. We just rescued Xerneas from Kronos, so she needs to go rest."

"Cool." Mewtwo said. "Well, follow me, Kortella, and we'll get right on those repairs. I must warn you, though: I haven't done extensive work on synthoids, but I can promise you that you won't explode during the course."

"Thanks, I guess." Kortella said, sweatdropping as she followed the clone back to his workshop.

"She'll be fine.' Xerneas said, trying to reassure the room.

"Yeah." Eon said. "But, what about Ace and Rose?"

As soon as she said that, said fighters crashed out of a Shadow Force Portal, Ace holding onto Rose and both of them a little scratched up. They got up, dusting themselves off.

"I am never going in there again!" Rose said, turning and folding her arms over her chest, shuddering a little.

"It was for one second." Ace said, slightly irritated. "It's over now."

"I don't care." Rose said, shuddering. "I may have lived on New Moon Island, but that was something I'd prefer never to do again."

"So" Yveltal said. "What happened with you guys?"

"Well, after we sent you guys off we fought Destronix." Ace said. "Unfortunately, he proved to be tougher than we originally thought."

"What happened?" Eon asked.

"Wellll…" Ace said, rubbing the back of his head.

 _With Ace and Rose—earlier_

"That should have done him in." Rose said as the smoke cleared, revealing Destronix was not only still alive, but he also didn't have a scratch on him.

"A worthy effort." Destronix said, chuckling. "But, you'll have to do better than that if you want to beat me."

"This might be a problem." Ace said. "I don't think I can do another blast like that in this forme."

"Me either." Rose said. "Let's just stick to hand to hand for now."

"Right." Ace said, the two of them charging at Destronix once again. They threw flurries of punches, some landing, others being blocked by Destronix. Eventually, Destronix shoved both Ace and Rose off of him.

"You two are pretty good." He said, chuckling. "I haven't gotten to use this much of my power in a while."

"If you like how we fight now" Rose said, seriousness fully in her voice. "Then you'll love my Floral Forme."

"Floral Forme?" Ace asked.

"Yep." Rose said. "I discovered a new forme during my little adventure with a good friend of mine."

"Funny." Ace said, chuckling. "So did I."

"Well, then" Rose said, looking at her old friend. "Let's unveil them together."

"Right." Ace said, grinning.

Both of them got into powerup positions and began to unleash their hidden powers.

Rose put her hands into the flowers attached to her wrists, the flowers glowing for a second. She began to yell, causing her hair to wave like in a breeze. Her eyes turned purple and her aura intensified.

Ace's hair turned as white as Rose's, his eyes turning redder than his scarf. His own aura intensified as well.

"Now!" they both shouted at the same time. "Taste the power of our signature moves!"

Rose charged up a greenish ball in her hand. The ball had traces of purple, orange, and seafoam green in it. She cupped her hands together, making the ball bigger.

Ace charged up a powerful black ball in his hand, making similar motions to Rose.

"Burning Poison Dragon's Solarbeam!" Rose shouted, releasing the powerful ball at Destronix as a beam of green swirling with orange, purple and seafoam green, similar to a Kamehameha.

"Kyuryoon Black Dragon Shadow Aura Burst!" Ace shouted, releasing his own signature attack, the powerful Dark beam heading towards Destronix.

Both beams collided with the synthoid, forcing him backwards and into the wall, eventually going through it. After about thirty seconds, Ace and Rose ceased their attacks, smoke filling the room. The wall had been completely destroyed, several rooms behind it as well.

Suddenly, red lights began to flash as alarms blared. Ace and Rose looked around, scanning the room.

"Seems we've activated some sort of self-destruct." Ace said.

"How long do we have to escape?" Rose asked, both of them returning to their normal formes.

"Not sure." Ace said. "But, I have a quick way."

Ace snapped his fingers, causing a portal in the shadows to open.

"No thanks." Rose said, backing away slowly. "I don't do well with shadows and dark places."

"It's the fastest way out." Ace said.

"No." Rose said, nervousness on her face.

"What's so bad?" Ace asked. "It will literally take a second for it to be over."

"I'm scared of the dark, okay!" Rose shouted. Ace simply stared at his friend, unable to understand, but trying anyway.

"I'm scared of the dark." Rose said again, looking down at the ground. "It's something I developed after you guys left and I went my own way. I learned to fear the darkness during my life because of things that hid in it. I—I had to face my fear at one point, but I can't now."

"Look." Ace said, extending his hand. "I'll be holding your hand. You don't even know you're in darkness. You step in and step out the other side immediately. It's not even moving through the floor. It's like walking in a door."

"O—okay." Rose said, taking Ace's hand. He pulled her close into something like a hug and stepped into the shadow portal.

 _Present time_

"So" Xerneas said, thinking. "That should be the end of those problems for now. We should see what Shadow's doing."

"Yeah." Eon said, nudging Ace with her elbow, a mischievous grin on her face. "You have to finish your date, don't you?"

"Date?" Rose asked, looking at Ace. "You're dating Shadow?"

"Yeah." Ace said. "That a problem?"

"That's my little sister." Rose said. "I don't think she's ready to date."

"How the hell would you know?" Ace asked. "You haven't seen her in thirteen years."

"I have a right to be worried for her." Rose said. "She is my blood."

"Okay, first off." Eon said, stepping up to Rose. "Ace is the best possible person to date Shadow. Second, you haven't even been around, so it's not like you even know how they're compatible. Third, they're both adults, so their business is theirs."

"We're not done with this conversation." Rose said.

"It's her decision, not yours." Ace simply said.

"Hey, Ace!" came the voice of Cela from down the hallway. "If that's you, we could use your help with Shadow here."

"Coming!" Ace called, taking off in a run down the hall, Rose on his heels.

 _With Shadow_

" **Yes, we're in your mind."** The woman said, grabbing the bound and gagged Shadow by her chin. **"And, I'm going to enjoy ravaging you here."**

Shadow's eyes widened with horror as she realized this strange doppelganger of herself was completely serious and had the capability to do exactly as she said.

" **Though"** the woman said, thinking. **"I guess I should introduce myself. You may call me Dakurai, but I guess you already do."**

Shadow began to focus her strength in breaking her bonds. Dakurai didn't seem to notice as she chuckled, standing up.

" **I think I'll leave you here for a while."** She said, beginning to walk away. **"Let your new situation sink in for a while."**

"Not very smart." A voice said from behind Dakurai. "You should know not to leave someone as powerful as us unattended."

Dakurai turned around to see the form of Ace Hunter, standing next to Shadow, Shadow seemingly just as surprised as Dakurai. Ace's aura was unleashed, giving Dakurai slight chills.

" **How did you get in here?!"** Dakurai shouted, firing a Dark Ball at Ace, who deflected it with ease.

"Simple." Ace said, moving behind Dakurai faster than she could track. "I just stepped in."

" **What are you?"** Dakurai asked, a little afraid of this person that she had just been posing as.

"I'm the real Ace Dakurai Hunter." Ace said, placing his hand on the back of Dakurai's head and firing a powerful Dark Blast into it. Dakurai's form dissipated, leaving the two Kyuryoon alone.

"Are you okay?" Ace asked Shadow, moving over to her and removing her bonds. Shadow stretched her limbs a little bit and stood up.

"Y-yeah." Shadow said, hugging Ace. "I am now."

"What happened?" Ace asked. "I just got here."

"I-it was a nightmare." Shadow said, holding Ace tightly and shedding a tear, relieved. "I saw a future where you became a monster and killed our friends. Though, I see now it was a nightmare created by that person."

"It's allright." Ace said, holding Shadow tightly. "I'm here now."

"Ace?" Shadow asked, looking into Ace's eyes.

"Yeah?" Ace replied.

"Can I test something?" Shadow asked softly.

"What?" Ace asked.

Shadow replied by pressing her lips against Ace's, Ace jolting back slightly in surprise before leaning into the kiss.

After they finished, Shadow hugged Ace tighter around the chest, resting her head on his shoulder.

"You pass." Shadow said.

"okay…" Ace said, not understanding what Shadow was talking about.

"Can we get out of here?" Shadow asked. "This place really feels gloomy."

"Sure." Ace said, snapping his fingers, the two of them fading out of the reality of Shadow's dreams.

 _In the real world_

Shadow's eyes slowly blinked open as she looked into the face of Ace, who was over her. She sat up, hugging him.

"Thank you." She whispered.

"No problem." He whispered back.

"I still don't think you two should be dating yet." Came a voice from behind them. Shadow looked over to see Rose sitting on a chair in the back, looking a bit relieved. "But, I guess Ace and you always did make a great couple."

"Who are you?" Shadow asked.

"Don't you recognize me, little sis?" Rose said, standing up and walking over to Shadow.

"R-Rose?" Shadow asked, recognition entering her eyes. She leaned forward and hugged her older sister, crying into her shoulder.

"Yep. It's me.' Rose said, smiling as she hugged her sister back.

"I-I thought you were—" Shadow began to say. "I mean, Ace told me—"

"He didn't know either." Rose said. "We met up accidentally while he was trying to find Xerneas and I tagged along."

"What's with the outfit?" Shadow asked. "You look like a superhero."

"Long story." Rose said. "Maybe I'll tell you someday."

"Will you stay?" Shadow asked softly.

Rose thought for a moment, as if internally conflicted with the decision.

"Yes." She said finally. "If only to see my little sis for a little while longer."

"Great." Shadow said.

"Oh, that reminds me." Rose said, reaching into her back pocket and pulling something out. "My best friend gave this to me and said to give it to someone who I felt could use it. I can't use it, but I have this strange feeling that you might be able to."

"What is it?" Shadow asked.

"This." Rose said, holding up a black leather band.

The band was about an inch and a half wide. It had a rainbow stone inside of it that had what looked like the pattern inside of a marble inside of it. The pattern was red and green and had thick black lines through it. There was a small dot under it that was also red and green.

Rose put it on Shadow's left arm at the wrist, Shadow then admiring it.

"I love it." She said, getting out of her bed at this point. "Thank you, Rose."

"Welcome." Rose said as the three of them walked out of the room. "Now, I've heard you two have been dating. You've got to tell me what I've missed of you while you were here."

 _At the lab of Dr. Kronos_

The rubble shifted, a hand clad in a gold bodysuit, punching its way through it. Soon after the form of Destronix emerged, stretching his back.

"So.' He said to himself. "Those two can fight after all. A worthy effort you two. This will be interesting. They even managed to hurt me."

"Well" Destronix continued, grinning. "I have a feeling they will be a challenge and hindrance to my plans, especially Ace Hunter. Well, I'll deal with them later. The first thing I need to do is do minor repairs and then I need to continue with my plans."

Destronix then used Teleport to remove himself from the location, the night becoming still once again.

* * *

So, it seems that Destronix is still alive. Oh, no, who could have seen this coming? (please note the sarcasm there-he's the titular villain, killing him off in the fourth chapter isn't the smartest thing to do here)

Well, it seems we've got new characters: Rose and Kortella.

And, it's so nice that the two sisters have reunited. Now they can have adventures together (or Rose could tease Ace and Shadow like Eon (and now Kortella) XP)

Next chapter: Rose's Story


	6. Rose's Story Part One: Seperation

Chapter 5: Rose's Story Part One: Separation

Rose looked at the letter in her hand, smiling slightly at it, her eyes blurry. Shadow walked over, noticing Rose with the letter.

"Hey, Rose." Shadow said, sitting down next to her. "What 'cha reading?"

"Oh, hey Shadow." Rose said, looking up. "That band looks perfect on you."

"Thanks." Shadow said, smiling. "So, what's that?"

"A letter I got from a friend of mine." Rose said. "She gave it to me a few years back."

"What's it say?" Shadow asked.

"Well" Rose said, chuckling. "It says ' _Rose and May, I wrote this to tell you that I have to go. I loved spending time with you, but I feel that it's time for me to continue my journey alone. I do hope you find who you're looking for and that you can live a happy life without me. With love, Cassandra_ '."

"Who's Cassandra? Shadow asked. "And who's May"

"My best friends." Rose said, sniffling a little. "I'll never meet anyone like them ever."

"You're sad." Shadow said, reading her sister's emotions. "And you're crying a little."

"Yeah." Rose said, wiping her masked eyes with her arm.

"Wait—" Shadow said softly. "Is she…"

"Yeah." Rose said, her voice quaky. "She is."

"Oh." Shadow said, her voice very quiet. "I'm sorry"

"It's okay." Rose said. "It's time I talked about it anyway."

"So" Shadow said, looking forward. "Is that when you evolved?"

"What do you mean?" Rose asked.

"I remember you being a Roselia." Shadow said, chuckling.

"Well, I was." Rose said, pulling out a white stone from her shirt that was very reflective. It was attached to a string that went around her neck. "But, this helped me evolve."

"Where'd you get a Shiny Stone?" Shadow asked, looking at the beautiful stone before Rose put it back into her shirt.

"It was Cassandra's." Rose said. "But, I used it to evolve and unlock my true Floral Forme at the same time. I used something similar when I was a Roselia, but when I became a Roserade, my true power unlocked. Your band was actually from May."

"What happened?" Shadow asked.

"Well, it's a long story." Rose said.

"I've got time." Shadow said, scooting next to her sister.

"I mean really long." Rose said. "It will take a really long time to tell."

"Like I said" Shadow said, getting comfortable. "I've got time."

"Allright." Rose said. "I'll tell you. But, only because it's you."

"Oh, are you telling a story?" came the voice of Ace, who sat down on the other side of Shadow. "I want a story."

"You're telling a story, Rose?" a voice came from behind them. "I like stories."

The three of them, mostly Shadow, turned around to see who had spoken.

The speaker was a girl who looked to be about sixteen. She was about five foot eight in height. She wore red shoes that were under her pants. Her pants were grey and were a little loose around her legs. Her shirt went down just below her midriff and was purple with a yellow circle on the chest. Inside the circle was a purple Crobat with red eyes, the Crobatman logo. Her face was soft and kind looking. Her hair was blonde and went over her shoulders. Her eyes were a soft azure color that seemed reflective.

"Hey, Kortella." Ace said. "How are the repairs working out for you?"

"Well" the synthoid girl said. "It's been three weeks and I haven't had any problems with them so far. I also haven't blown up either, so another bonus."

"Well" Shadow said, inviting the synthoid girl to sit down. "Do you want to hear it?"

"Sure." Kortella said, sitting down.

"Allright." Rose said, sighing. "I suppose I should just tell you guys."

"Might as well." Ace said, shrugging.

"Well" Rose said, chuckling. "This is a story of me and two friends who went on a little 'quest'. The story begins when Giratina attacked New Moon Island."

 _Rose's story (note: this involves Rose voiceover (very rare). In that case Rose's voiceover text will be italicized and have quotations around it to distinguish it from a standard transition—it will be the only italicized text—also, this will still be in third person unless stated otherwise)_

" _Well, once Giratina attacked New Moon Island, he didn't actually check to see if there were survivors (mostly because he was worried about you two)_."

She woke up groggily, a pain in her head and the smell of smoke of her lungs. She sat up and looked around. All around her was the burning remains of her home. Fire and smoke were everywhere. She became a little nervous, being extra sensitive to Fire.

Suddenly, painful memories flashed back to her: walking through the house, an explosion knocking her back, a beam hitting her on the head, then blackness.

She cried for her father and sister, one of whom was in the house. She ran around the house, looking for him.

Unsuccessful in her search, she sat down, beginning to cry. After about five minutes, she stopped. She realized that she at least needed to save herself, since she couldn't find her father and her sister was outside. She looked towards the front door, but found that large amounts of burning debris were blocking it.

She began to panic, frantically looking for a way out of the burning house. She located an open space untouched by the fire. She quickly ran toward it, reaching it and realizing that it was higher than she could reach, even by jumping. After about three attempts, she made it onto a ledge hanging out from it. The ledge, however, broke away, sending her falling a little ways back to the ground, landing on her back.

She stood up, a little shakily due to the jarring of hitting the ground. She looked to her left, seeing a mirror. She looked at herself in the mirror, seeing the way she looked.

She was eight years old. She wore a green dress with lighter green stockings. Under it she wore a yellow vest-like shirt that had cut off sleeves. Under that she wore a lighter green shirt that had long sleeves. She wore green shoes that went over her leggings. She wore gloves, one red and one blue. Her face was sooty, but she could see it still held the childlike innocence and gentleness it always had. Her hair was green and stuck up in a few places, as did the green hair band in it. Her eyes were red and were like crimson orbs.

She then decided to try to escape again. She got a running start and jumped up to a ledge that she noticed. She stretched as far as she could, reaching for and grabbing onto the ledge. She pulled herself up and out of the house. She jumped to the ground, landing on her left arm painfully, but not severely damaging.

She stood up, holding her arm and wincing at the pain. She knew it wasn't broken, but it still hurt a lot.

She looked around for her sister and her sister's best friend, but neither of them was anywhere to be found.

She decided to explore the area around their home for some sign of her family and friend. Leaving the Dark Grove, where her house and her neighbor's house were located, she walked into the Dark Forest, which took up the vast majority of New Moon Island, the place she was born and raised.

The island itself was said to have been spawned in the Darkness of hell itself, most of the beings residing there either Dark of Ghost types or Kyuryoon, which was something she didn't know much about. Though, the only residents she'd ever seen there were her family and her neighbor's family. But, she'd heard of other residents that had once lived there.

There were said to be cults surrounding this 'Kyuryoon', but she, being eight, didn't know much about them either. The only thing she knew was that her little sister and her best friend were Kyuryoon. What that meant for them, she didn't know. In truth, it kind of made her jealous, but she'd never come right out and say it.

As she made her way through the forest, she heard the sound of talking, though it sounded like only one person was talking.

"That voice doesn't sound familiar." She thought to herself. "I wonder who it belongs to. But, are they friendly?"

She moved closer to the source of the voice, creeping carefully through the trees. Ever since she was three, she'd learned to use her Grass type abilities to aid her in her stealthiness. She was nearly as silent as a shadow, nearly unseen and unheard (even though no one besides the mysterious speaker was even close to her).

She found a clearing where she saw the mysterious speaker clearly.

The speaker was a woman about five foot ten in height. She seemed to be in her twenties or thirties. She wore pink, high-heeled boots that went over her light purple leggings. She wore a short pink skirt that had a golden ring that went around her waist. She wore a light purple shirt that had no sleeves over a pink shirt that had short sleeves, both of them cutting off at her midriff. She wore light purple gloves that went almost up to her elbows, a golden ring on each wrist. She had a golden ring around her neck as well. Her hair was pink and went down over her shoulders, though it was also tied in a bun in the back. Parts of it had golden bands (imagine the things Zelda had in her hair in Skyward Sword) in it. She wore golden mini hoop earrings. Her face was one of irritation (for the moment—it was her current mood). Her eyes were green and golden, both at the same time, and showed intellect as well as prankster's mischief. Rose's limited Psychic powers revealed to her that this woman wasn't evil or had malicious intent.

"Damn it!" the woman said, crossing her arms over her chest. "Where is it?! It's supposed to be here. Where could it have gone?!"

The girl snuck up behind her quietly, not making a single sound, while still hidden in the bushes. She was about five feet from the woman when she started speaking again.

"You can come out now, kid." The woman said, chuckling, not turning around. "I know you're there. I am part Psychic type, you know. I don't know how someone as young as you is that quiet and stealthy, but I have to say, you're pretty good."

The girl walked out of the bush, standing behind the woman, who turned around and looked her up and down.

"You're not a Kyuryoon." The woman said. "And still quiet as a shadow. You must have been born to Ghost types, because you're quiet."

"Actually" the girl said quietly. "My mother was a Roserade and my father was a Gallade."

"Damn." The woman said, shocked. "You're really good then. You must really be using those Grass type abilities."

"I've known how to do it for a while." The girl said, looking down at the ground.

"Well, kid" the woman said, kneeling down and extending her hand, a toothy grin on her face. "I think it's time we introduced ourselves. My name's Hoopa. Hoopa Meschef (A/N: consider this as a strange pronunciation for mischief) Archdjinn. What's yours?" (for those of you that read Team Lunar Fire, this isn't the same one from there—that's a different universe altogether)

"Rose." The girl said, shaking Hoopa's hand, a little uneasy. "Rose Surade Darkstar."

"Well, Rose" Hoopa said, standing up. "I'm looking for two individuals, known as Kyuryoon. Have you seen them?"

"Why?" Rose asked, curious.

"It's what I was hired to do." Hoopa said, shrugging. "They're a very powerful and potentially dangerous type of people. All of them are Dark types, but some of them don't originate as Dark types."

"Like my little sister." Rose said, thinking aloud.

"Your sister's a Kyuryoon?" Hoopa asked, curious.

"Yeah." Rose said. "But, I can't find her or my neighbor, who is one too."

"Could those two be them…?" Hoopa said quietly. "Could they be the ones I'm supposed to find? Hopefully Arceus can handle them if she encounters them, but I might have to destroy them if I see them."

"Why would you kill my sister?" Rose asked, shocked. Hoopa also looked shocked that Rose had heard her.

"How old are the two of them?" Hoopa asked.

"Seven.' Rose said, holding up said amount of fingers. "One year younger than me."

"Well, then" Hoopa said. "If they've left, then Arceus would be able to handle two kids."

"Who's Arceeyus (A/N: this is Rose's attempt at the pronunciation)?" Rose asked, curious. The name sounded familiar to her, almost as if it was reverential.

"Well" Hoopa said, thinking of what to say in description of the being known as Arceus (Arcey). "She's the current god of this world."

"So she's like a queen?" Rose asked, amazed.

"Sort of." Hoopa said, grinning. "But, she really doesn't talk about her title much. She prefers to have a normal life, without people knowing her true identity."

"Like a secret agent?" Rose asked.

"I guess." Hoopa said, shrugging. "So, are your sister and neighbor on the island?"

"I haven't found them." Rose said sadly. "They weren't in the fire, so I decided to look in here, but I found you instead."

"Fire?!" Hoopa said, her voice taking on a good deal of alarm. "Then, we should find them before they get hurt or worse."

"I'll take you back there." Rose said, running in the direction of her house. Hoopa followed her, matching her pace.

They reached the house, Hoopa staring at it in horror. The entire house was smashed by giant blue rocks radiating a Dragonic energy. Flames sprouted from it, turning the rest of the house to ashes.

Hoopa scanned the remains of the house with her Psychic powers, not coming up with any signs of life or aura in any sense.

"Are they safe?" Rose asked, worried.

"They're not anywhere around here." Hoopa said, crossing her arms, thinking. "In fact, aside from the two of us, I don't sense any other beings. They must not be on the island."

"You mean they left?" Rose asked.

"It's a possibility." Hoopa said. "I sense Giratina's aura a little so he must have been here (*quietly so Rose wouldn't hear*—and used this Draco Meteor). He might have taken them somewhere."

"Where would he take them?" Rose asked.

"I don't know." Hoopa admitted. "I'm not allowed in the Distortion World and the Hall of Origins, so we could look at another few places."

"Okay." Rose said.

"First, however" Hoopa said, taking off the golden band on her left wrist. "Let's head back to my home and get some lunch. I'm STARVING!"

"Me too." Rose said, giggling as her stomach growled.

"Well, let's go the fast way." Hoopa said, throwing her ring up in the air. "Alléhooparing!"

Upon her speaking those words, Hoopa's ring expanded to about six feet in diameter. It turned a dark purple on the inside and swirled around like the clouds.

Rose looked at the portal with wide eyes. She began to back away slowly.

"What's wrong?" Hoopa asked, noticing Rose retreating.

"I-I'm scared of the dark." Rose said, her voice quaking.

"Listen." Hoopa said, putting her arm around Rose. "There's nothing to be afraid of. I'll be right here next to you the entire time."

"But, it's so scary!" Rose said, shivering slightly.

"Hmmm." Hoopa said, thinking. An idea hit her and she snapped her fingers, her face lighting up. "I've got it!"

Hoopa took off the ring on her right wrist, causing it to enlarge to about ten inches in diameter, and put it around Rose's neck (it had a clasp). It was very loose, but it stayed on well.

"This is my bravery ring." She said, holding up a finger. "It helps you become braver. Keep this ring close to you and you'll never have to be afraid of the dark again."

"Th-thank you." Rose said, in awe.

"So" Hoopa asked, holding out her hand. "Want to go now?"

"I—I guess." Rose said, taking Hoopa's hand. The Prankster Pokémon floated up into the ring, holding Rose.

The inside of the ring was dark and Rose's grip on Hoopa became tighter as she clenched her eyes shut tightly. However, after about a minute, the two of them exited the portal, the ring shrinking back down to its original size and floating back onto Hoopa's wrist.

"Here we are." Hoopa said, waving her hand to encompass the area around them. "This is the wonderful Hoenn region. Littleroot Town to be precise. That wasn't so bad, now was it, kiddo?"

"No" Rose said, thinking over it. "I-I guess not."

"This is my house." Hoopa said, pointing to a house in front of them. It was a small house, not fancy or extravagant. Normal or average was a better word for it in fact.

"It's nice." Rose said.

"Thanks." Hoopa said, chuckling. "It's been ages since I've had anyone else here besides a few random neighbors, but they don't live here."

"There are other kids that live here?" Rose asked, curious.

"Yep." Hoopa said, walking up to her door and unlocking it. "There's one girl in particular that visits often. She's my next door neighbor, Professor Birch's daughter. Her name is May, I think. You'd like her."

"Really?" Rose asked.

"Yeah." Hoopa said, chuckling. "She's really nice."

"Okay." Rose said, smiling.

"Now" Hoopa said, looking down as her stomach growled. "Let's get something to eat."

"Yay!" Rose shouted, jumping up and down.

Hoopa walked into the kitchen of her home, Rose following. The Prankster Pokémon grabbed two plates, setting them on different places on the table.

"Here." Hoopa said, handing Rose the salt shaker. "Throw a little over your shoulder for good luck."

Obediently, Rose picked up the shaker, tipping it over to pour it into her hand. However, the lid of the salt shaker fell off, allowing a large amount of salt to pour into her hand. Rose looked at in confusion, shock beginning to spread on her face.

Hoopa snickered, putting her arm on Rose's shoulder.

"Don't worry, kiddo." The prankster Pokémon said, scooping the salt back into the shaker. "I did that earlier for when May comes over. She and I always love pulling pranks."

"Oh." Rose said, understanding. "Okay."

"Well, sit down, kiddo" Hoopa said, bringing out a couple sandwiches. "And, let's eat."

"Yay!" Rose said, putting her hands up in the air.

The two of them ate, satisfying their tyrannical stomachs. After they were finished, Hoopa's cell phone rang.

"Hold on, kiddo." She said, looking at it. "I gotta take this."

"Allright." Rose said, drinking a glass of milk.

Hoopa went into the other room and answered her phone.

"Hello?" she said.

"Hoopa!" came the voice from the other end of the phone, belonging to a female. "Where are you?! You didn't call to tell us how your mission went!"

"Well, maybe" Hoopa said, her voice getting tense. "If you'd waited for me instead of just blowing them up, we could have met up and discussed a plan. Now, you've nearly killed one of the residents that was an innocent and I hear you've taken two others with you."

"What told you that?" the voice said.

"The girl that was in the house." Hoopa said. "She said her sister and her best friend were outside the house when your boyfriend went all Armageddon on the place."

"So, she's alright?" the voice asked, concern in the speaker's voice.

"Yeah." Hoopa said. "I'm keeping her here at my place with me. She's wondering if her friend and sister are allright."

"Oh, they're fine." The voice said, the speaker's tone reassuring. "Though, I didn't know there was another child there. Is it a Kyuryoon?"

"No, she's not." Hoopa said. "She's pretty stealthy, though, and I can sense a good deal of hidden power within her."

"Well, please take good care of her." The voice said.

"Wait, hold on." Hoopa said. "Shouldn't she be with her sister and her friend?"

"Well" the voice said. "I would, but I need to do some things with the two Kyuryoon to help them control their immense Dark powers and I can't really focus on another child right now. I would send one of them to train with Kyurem, but the boy refuses to leave the girl's side. He almost broke Giratina's arm when he tried to separate them one time. He's really protective of her and she's really attached to them. I scanned their memories and they've had a bad past, so I can't separate them. I have four children here already and I am really incapable of taking care of seven, even with Giratina's help. Also, she's come into contact with your aura, preventing her access from the Hall of Origin and the Distortion World. It will take years for it to flush through her system, so I think she'd be better with you."

"Alright." Hoopa said, sighing. "I'll take care of her. But, you better not let those kids get hurt, Arceus, or I'll be down there in a heartbeat."

"Oh, don't worry." The voice, Arceus, said. "I can handle two more children, even two Kyuryoon."

"You better." Hoopa said, chuckling as she hung up the phone. She turned around to see Rose standing behind her, looking up at her.

"Are my sister and her friend alright?" she asked.

"Yeah, kid." Hoopa said, kneeling down and running her fingers through Rose's hair. "They'll be just fine. Unfortunately, we can't go see them."

"Why not?" Rose asked.

"Not sure." Hoopa said. "But, if you want, you could live here with me. How does that sound?"

"Okay." Rose said, smiling. "I like you, Miss Hoopa."

Hoopa blushed slightly at this and covered her mouth with her hand.

"Allright, then." She said, holding out her hand. "Let me take you to your room."

Rose took Hoopa's hand and the Prankster Pokémon led her to the other end of the house. She opened a door on the far end, showing Rose inside. The room was furnished as a typical guest room; a bed, chair, table, nightstand with lamp, and closet all were assorted in the room.

"This is your room." Hoopa said, gesturing toward it. "It's not furnished for a child, but I guess it'll have to do for now."

"It's fine." Rose said. "I like it."

"Thanks, kiddo." Hoopa said, chuckling. "So, what should we do?"

"I think" Rose said, thinking over what they could do. "We could play a game."

"Like what?" Hoopa asked. "Most of the games I play are pranks and I don't think most of them would work on you."

"Can you teach me some pranks?" Rose asked. "Those sound fun."

"Yeah, they are, kiddo." Hoopa said, snickering at the thought of her jokes. "But, I don't think you're quite ready for pranks of that scale just yet."

"Why not?" Rose asked, curious.

"Well" Hoopa began to explain, kneeling down so she was eye level with Rose. "These pranks are very special and difficult to accomplish. You're still my apprentice if you choose to be. I, however, am the prank master. I can teach you some awesome skills, but only if you accept my training."

"I wanna be a prank master too!" Rose said, amazed.

"Allright then, kiddo." Hoopa said, holding up a finger. "We can begin."

"Yay!" Rose shouted, jumping up and down.

"Now" Hoopa said, holding up a finger and grinning. "The first rule is you've gotta be sneaky and quiet. But, you've got that covered."

"What's the second rule?" Rose asked, funny attentive.

"You've gotta have a good idea." Hoopa said. "Gotta have some originality. I was telling the neighbor girl…"

Suddenly, Hoopa's lesson was interrupted by a knock on the door. The Prankster Pokémon got up to answer the door, Rose following her.

Standing on the other side of the door was a girl about Rose's height and quite possibly age. She wore a dark grey, sleeveless dress that went down to her knees, with stockings that were black with red stripes. She had on black and red gloves that were fingerless. Around her neck went a black fuzzy scarf. Her face was one that held childlike innocence and for some reason, a good deal of mischief. Two of her teeth were longer and pointier than the others, sticking out of her mouth like fangs. Her wild hair was mostly black, with a red streak down the middle, and went down to her shoulders. Her eyes were blue and sparkled a little.

"Hiya!" she said, waving, her voice like that of a child.

"Oh, May." Hoopa said, inviting the girl, May, inside. "Come in. You're a bit early and I wasn't expecting you quite yet."

"Sorry, Mrs. A." May said, rubbing the back of her head, similar to an anime character. "But, my mom kicked me out of the lab again."

"Why'd she kick you out?" Hoopa asked, having the feeling she already knew the answer from her pupil.

"Said something about soda not coming out of her lab coats." May said.

"Mentos?" Hoopa asked, a smile coming to her lips.

"You know it." May said, she and Hoopa both snickering.

"Nice." Hoopa said, just before something caught her eye. Rose was staring at the Zorua girl curiously, never having seen a Dark type other than her neighbors (or pretty much any other type for that matter). "Oh, May, I'd like to introduce you to Rose. She'll be staying with me and I think you to would make great friends."

"Hiya!" May said, pouncing on top of Rose and pinning her to the ground, a grin on her face. "I'm May. May Zoroa Birch. I think we'll make great friends too."

"Rose." Rose said, a little disoriented from being knocked to the ground. "Rose Surade Darkstar. I think so too."

"Cool." May said. A very tiny flash of light flashed around May (not enough to blind, but like a little flash). Once the flash dissipated, May was still on top of Rose, but she then looked exactly like her, save a small red streak in the front of her hair. May (A/N: if and when May transforms into someone, I'll use their name with quotes around it, in this case 'Rose') snickered, looking Rose directly in the face.

"Cool, right?" she asked, still grinning.

"That's amazing." Rose said, her eyes wide.

"Yep!" 'Rose' said, jumping off of Rose and extending a hand to help the Roselia girl up.

"May." Hoopa said, a slight sternness in her voice. "What have I told you about transforming into people when you first meet them?"

"Only if they know you." 'Rose' said, looking down slightly.

"Good girl." Hoopa said, ruffling May's hair. She squeezed 'Rose's' hair and pulled, causing her to transform back into her original forme. "Now, you two go play. Rose, I'd like you back here before it gets dark. Oh, and don't be too reckless. May, you remember what happened the last time."

"Right, Mrs. A." May said, snickering.

Rose and May walked out the door, running and laughing. Hoopa watched them, sitting down in a chair and sighing with contentment.

"Well" she said, chuckling to herself. "Of all the things I thought I'd be, a mother wasn't one of them. Arcey, I swear if this is another one of those lessons, I swear to your great grandfather I'll kick your ass the next time I see you."

"Still" she said, looking out her window at Rose and May, running around and having fun like children should. "There's something about that girl. She may not be a Kyuryoon, but there's still a good deal of power in her. I wonder how powerful she could become, especially if she evolves."

 _With May and Rose_

"So, you can transform into anyone?" Rose asked, amazed.

"Yep." May said, snickering. "But, if my hair gets pulled, I can't keep the form up. My mom says when I evolve, I'll have more control, but until then, I guess I go with what I've got."

"Can your mom transform too?" May asked.

"Yep." May said, laying back down on the grass, Rose laying down with her. "But, she's better at it. And, she doesn't do it much. She says that it's not really necessary as a scientist or something like that."

"She's a scientist?" Rose asked.

"Yep." May said. "Professor Birch, she calls herself."

"Cool." Rose said, intrigued.

"Yeah" May said. "But, that's not half as cool as my dad's job."

"What does he do?" Rose asked.

"He's a Gym Leader." May said, excitement in her voice.

"A Gym Leader?" Rose asked. She'd heard of the Gym Leaders, powerful fighters that guarded the regions they were in, just under the Elite Four, who were just under the Champion, who was just under the Legendaries, basically the gods of the region, feared and respected, powerful beyond belief. Even to be a Gym Leader, one had to be very powerful and skilled, a near master of their powers.

"Yeah!" May said excitedly. "He's awesome and badass and gets to beat up the bad guys! He's the coolest guy ever!"

"Funny." A voice came from behind the two girls. "Hearing you say that makes it worth all the paperwork I have to do."

"Daddy!" May shouted, getting up and running over to the speaker.

The speaker was a man who looked to be in his thirties, his frame a bit larger than average. He wore black boots over blue jeans. He wore a red jacket that was zipped all the way up. His face was one of power and skill, yet also kindness and compassion. His hair was short and black. His eyes were blue and reflected skill and strength.

"Hey, short stuff." The man said, picking May up and putting her on his shoulders. "How've you been? Get into any trouble while I've been gone?"

"Nope!" May said, grinning.

"Really?" the man asked, his tone suspicious.

"Weeelll" May said, rubbing the back of her head and laughing nervously. "Maybe a little."

"Well, then" the man said. "Who's your little friend?"

"I'm Rose.' Rose said, waving and smiling. "I'm staying with Miss Hoopa."

"So, Hoopa's back, eh?" the man said. "Well, I'm Norman. Norman Birch. Pleased to meet you."

"You too." Rose said.

"So" Norman said, looking up at May. "What have you been doing since I've been gone?"

"Having fun!" May shouted, throwing her fists in the air.

"So, it would seem." Norman said, laughing. "Well, it's time to see if your mother's cooked anything for dinner."

"It's spaghetti!" May shouted.

"Yes!" Norman said. "Well, let's get some."

"Alright!" May shouted.

"Oh, and Rose." Norman said, looking at the Roselia girl. "Tell Hoopa you're both invited to dinner. We need to catch up on a few things."

"Oh, okay." Rose said, turning around and walking back into the house.

 _Later_

"So Norman's back, eh?" Hoopa asked, Rose having told her what Norman said. "It has been a while since I've seen him."

"He said we were invited to dinner." Rose said. "It's spaghetti."

"Oh HELL yeah!" Hoopa shouted, jumping up out of her chair. "Zorra's spaghetti is the BEST! Kid, you are in for a treat tonight."

"Is it really good?" Rose asked.

"Listen, kiddo." Hoopa said, kneeling down to Rose's level. "When you taste her spaghetti, all other spaghetti becomes dry noodles in watery sauce. Arceo himself couldn't make a better spaghetti than Professor Zorra Birch."

"That sounds good." Rose said, her mouth beginning to water.

"Trust me." Hoopa said, putting her hands on Rose's shoulders and looking her dead in the eyes. "It is."

 _Later—just before dinner_

"So, Hoopa" Norman said, greeting the Prankster Pokémon as she and Rose walked through the door. "How have you been?"

"Great." Hoopa said. "Kicked any ass lately?"

"Nope." Norman said, chuckling. "It's been really slow lately."

"Well" Hoopa said, shrugging. "Maybe you'll find that one good challenger someday."

"I hope so." Norman said, sighing. "I'll need a successor soon and I don't think May will be ready by that time."

"I'll be the most badass Gym Leader ever!" May shouted, pouncing on Norman and tackling him to the ground.

"That you will." Norman said, standing up and holding the Tricky Fox Pokémon over his head, roaring like a dragon. "That you will."

"Guys!" called a voice from the other room. "Dinner's ready! Come and get it!"

"Alright!" the four people shouted, running and clambering over each other to get into the dining room to eat the food prepared.

They all sat down at the table, hungry looks in their eyes. May and Norman sat with a chair in between them while Hoopa and Rose sat on the opposite end of the table next to each other.

A woman came out of the kitchen, holding a large pot of spaghetti. She set it down in the center of the table before taking her own seat in between Norman and May.

The woman wore black pants with some red stripes on them and a dark grey shirt. Her shoes were like hospital shoes, but black with red laces. Over her shirt she wore a lab coat that went down to her shins. Her face showed intelligence and kindness. Her hair was a bit wild and went down to her legs. It was tied in a ponytail by a large blue band and was red with black highlights. Her eyes were blue, about the same shade as May's.

"It looks great, Zorra" Norman said, the three females other than Zorra staring at the spaghetti with wide open mouths, Hoopa and May with drool coming out of theirs. "I'm sure we'll enjoy it (if we get any, that is)."

May and Hoopa snickered, still looking at the spaghetti.

"Allright." Zorra said, getting herself and Norman some spaghetti. "Don't make a mess, you three."

May, Hoopa, and Rose dug in (well, Rose politely got some spaghetti and May and Hoopa started to eat like Goku and Vegeta.

After they had eaten their fill, they all sat back and began to talk.

"So Hoopa" Norman said to the Prankster Pokémon. "How've you been since we last talked?"

"Oh, fine." Hoopa said, shrugging. "How about you?"

"Oh, fine." Norman replied.

"What have you done since we last talked?" Hoopa asked.

"Well" Norman said, his face turning serious for a second. "There's this organization that's been slowly creeping up in the region that calls itself 'Team Aqua'. Bunch of pirates or whatever."

"Pirates, eh?" Hoopa asked, shrugging with a small grin. "Eh, shouldn't be too bad. Usually, they just stick to water."

"True." Norman said. "So, what have you done since we last talked?"

"Well" Hoopa said, thinking. "I'm in the mother business now."

"Really?" Zorra asked. "So, where did you find Rose here?"

"New Moon Island." Hoopa said. Zorra's eyes widened slightly. She knew what New Moon Island was home to.

"Really?" she asked. "I didn't think that Roselia and other Grass types liked the Dark atmosphere of that island."

"Neither do Gallade." Hoopa said, pointing the fact out. "Her old man's a Gallade and her mom's a Roserade."

"Odd combination." Zorra said, thinking. "Especially to live on New Moon Island."

"That's where I found her." Hoopa said. "I'm taking care of her here because Arcey can't handle 'that many children' as she said."

"Arcey" Norman asked. "Are you talking about Arceus? Arceus Multius?"

"That's what I call her." Hoopa said, grinning. "She liked the nickname, so it stuck."

"So" Zorra asked. "Why were you on the island in the first place?"

"Me and Giratina had some—uh—work to do there." Hoopa said, glancing slightly at Rose. "He beat me there and found her sister and her friend. I got there and found her."

"Oh, you have a sister?" Zorra asked Rose.

"Yeah." Rose said, certain memories coming back to her, some happy, some sad. "She's a Gardevoir. And she had a best friend too. He was a Darkrai." (A/N: since I didn't mention it before, even in the first Azure Light, Darkora was taken with her mother from New Moon Island when she was an infant, shortly after the ritual of the Kyuryoon (see Azure Light ch. 19), so Rose has no idea of her existence at this point, being too young to remember her)

"A Darkrai?" Zorra said, her eyes widening. "I thought those were a myth or, at the very least, extinct. That race hasn't been seen in ages."

"Well, he is." Rose said. "At least that's what his father said."

"Interesting" Zorra said, thinking.

"Let's not pressure the kid." Hoopa said. "It's pretty tough to talk about your parents after they die."

"Oh, your parents died?" Zorra asked. "I'm so sorry."

"It's okay." Rose said, smiling. "My momma's looking down on me and smiling."

"I'll bet she is." Zorra said, smiling.

"So" May said. "You wanna see something cool I can do?"

"Sure." Rose said, following the Zorua girl outside.

The three of them alone at the table, Norman, Hoopa, and Zorra began their own conversation.

"So" Norman said, leaning forward a little. "Why were you actually at New Moon Island? I could tell you didn't want to say for Rose's sake, but I can tell you weren't there for completely peaceful reasons."

Hoopa looked behind her to see if the door was shut and the children were outside.

"I was there" she said. "to destroy several Kyuryoon that were sighted. Giratina and I were assigned this task from our leaders in Ghost. (A/N: Ghost is an organization of mercenaries that Giratina and Hoopa are a part of at this current point)"

Norman and Zorra's eyes widened at the word 'Kyuryoon'. They knew of the Dark Race.

"Giratina beat me to the island." Hoopa said, looking down at the table, her tone a little sadder. "And destroyed the two houses that were on the island. However, Rose happened to be in one of them. I was in the Dark Forest and she found me. Giratina found her sibling and friend, taking them to Arcey. Unfortunately, in taking Rose through my Ring, she came too close in contact with my aura, which is forbidden in both the Hall of Origin and the Distortion World for the next five years (you two know why), and can't even see them until then. I'm gonna raise her here where it's nice and peaceful. She may not be a Kyuryoon, but I'm not letting her live a harsh, violent life if I can help it."

"Sounds like you're speaking from personal experience." Zorra said.

"I am." Hoopa said. "I grew up in a violent world, that violence increasing when I grew up and joined Ghost. I don't want her to experience that. In fact, just so she doesn't have to, I severed my ties with Ghost as I know Giratina did to protect the other two and his own daughter. We don't want them to have lives like this."

"Understood." Norman said. "I'm guessing you don't want her to know."

"Exactly." Hoopa said. "Can we keep it that way?"

"Sure." Norman said, putting his arm on Hoopa's shoulder.

 _Present time_

"Well" Rose said, standing up and stretching her limbs. "I've gotta stop there. It's getting late and I've got somewhere to be."

"Right." Ace said. "But, we want to hear the end of the story."

"Later I will." Rose said, heading out the front door. "But, for now I've got something to do."

"Understood." Ace said. The three of them watched her go.

"Where do you think she's going?" Ace asked.

"No idea." Shadow said. "She's been going every day this month."

"Well" Ace said, shrugging. "I guess we'll find out one day."

* * *

Well, it seems we're learning some about Rose's backstory. What secrets does the Roserade woman hold? Find out on the next chapter of Azure Light 2.

The character of Rose was an idea submitted to me by Venatorix.

Next chapter: Cassandra


	7. Rose's Story Part Two: Cassandra

Chapter Six: Rose's Story Part Two: Cassandra

 _Previously:_

 _-What's that?"_

" _It's a letter from one of my best friends."_

 _-"What happened to her?"_

" _It's a long story."_

" _I've got time."_

" _Well…"_

 _-"What's your name, kid? Mine's Hoopa."_

" _Rose."_

" _Well, Rose, why don't you come with me and we'll go someplace safer?"_

" _Okay."_

 _-"Hiya! I'm May! I think we'll make great friends."_

" _Me too."_

 _-"What's the real reason you were on Newmoon Island?"_

" _We were sent there to kill the Kyuryoon. Don't tell her about it, though."_

 _On a note: anything in italics with quotes is a voice over—addressed to the person the text is attributed to._

 **Pokémon Azure Light 2 Chapter Six: Rose's Story Part 2: Cassandra**

Shadow yawned and stretched her limbs. She kept her eyes closed, the lids feeling heavy. Suddenly, she felt someone put their arms around her, the two arms clasping each other. She also felt something, presumably a head, resting on her shoulder.

" **Good morning, sleepyhead."** The voice said, almost cheerfully. Shadow blinked her eyes, looking at the person speaking to her. **"Did you rest well?"**

The person speaking looked almost exactly like her. She wore white, three inch heels and white pants. She wore a blue shirt that was cut in a jagged pattern just below her midriff as opposed to Shadow's own green shirt. She wore a white jacket with sleeves that went down to her wrists. On her hands were blue gloves that were fingerless. She, however, lacked the black, leather band with the rainbow colored stone that Shadow wore on her wrist. Her face looked almost exactly like Shadow's own, save for it having a large grin on her face. Her hair was as white as Shadow's was black, but instead of green highlights, she had red highlights. Her eyes were about three shades darker than Shadow's.

" **Though"** Dakurai said, thinking about her statement. **"Since you're seeing me, I guess you're still sleeping."**

Shadow jolted backwards, almost clumsily getting to a standing position. It was at this point she realized where the two of them were: a dark, seemingly evil place that gave her chills (or was it Dakurai?). There wasn't much here except for the two of them. She remembered Ace having conversations with Darkrai in a similar area. The oddest thing to her was that she couldn't sense any evil from Dakurai; when she'd been posing as Ace, her entire being gave off strong waves of negative energy.

" **Oh, don't worry, dearie."** Dakurai said, smiling a little. **"I'm not gonna hurt you."**

Shadow continued backing away, feeling behind her in case there was a wall behind her.

" **Because if I wanted to hurt you"** Dakurai said, instantaneously moving behind Shadow and putting an arm around her shoulder, which sort of pinned her arms to her sides, the other hand on Shadow's chin. Shadow's body began to tremble a little, her heart rate and breathing increased. Her eyes constricted out of fear as she became almost glued to the spot she was standing in even though she couldn't for the life of her sense any sort of threat from Dakurai.

" **I already would have."** Dakurai said, whispering it softly into Shadow's ear. Shadow's breathing stopped for a few seconds as Dakurai giggled at the Dark Empath's reaction.

" **Well, I suppose you're wondering why I'm here."** Dakurai said, moving back in front of Shadow and crossing her arms over her chest, smiling casually.

"Th-the thought had crossed my mind." Shadow said, taking a step backwards away from Dakurai.

" **You know I didn't die."** Dakurai said. **"You could tell I wasn't killed. Though, your thoughts at the time were more occupied with your Dark savior."**

"Why are you back?" Shadow asked.

" **To talk."** Dakurai said, chuckling a little.

"What are you?" Shadow asked.

" **Well, I'm not like Darkrai"** Dakurai said, shrugging, seemingly like a child. **"If that's what you're wondering. I'm more of your own personal inner being, born of your own fears and Darkness. In truth I don't really care about taking your body. It's MUCH more fun to play with you in here. I hope we can do it again sometime."**

"Then what was the point of that nightmare?" Shadow asked. "If not to fight for my body?"

" **You kind of overloaded me with negative energy when you did that powerup."** Dakurai said, chuckling again. **"I went a little crazy. But, it was kinda fun."**

"I didn't think it was very fun." Shadow said, crossing her arms. "But, why are you here now?"

" **I figured we should get proper introductions out of the way."** Dakurai said, moving behind Shadow again and leaning over her shoulder, draping her arms down. **"Since we are going to be playmates, after all."**

Shadow's breathing began to quicken at the word 'playmates', remembering the last encounter she'd had with Dakurai.

" **Oh, don't worry."** Dakurai said. **"I won't hurt you."**

"I think I need to wake up." Shadow said.

" **I guess you're right. Well, I'll let you go for now, my 'prey'."** Dakurai whispered into Shadow's ear, giggling. **"You've got things to do today. I'll see you later though. Oh, and don't worry; I won't knock you out like last time. I was a bit unstable due to your, um, powerup. Plus, we can even talk anytime. I'm always here. Bye now."**

 _Shadow's room_

Shadow jolted upright in her bed, looking around her to see her surroundings. Everything looked as it had the previous night, save for Ace sitting next to her bed, dressed in his usual black attire with her red scarf.

"Pleasant conversation?" he asked casually.

"How long have you been there?" Shadow asked.

"About an hour." Ace said. "I was coming in to get you for breakfast because you didn't come into the dining room."

"How much of that did you hear?" Shadow asked.

"There wasn't anything I'd be embarrassed to hear." Ace said. "I'd have left if there was."

"Well, she could do worse." Shadow said.

"Maybe." Ace said, taking Shadow's hand. "But, I'll always be right here."

"Thanks." Shadow said, hugging the Nightmare Demon.

"Now" Ace said. "Let's go find your sister and threaten (er, I mean convince) her to finish that story."

"Right.' Shadow said, giggling. The two Kyuryoon got up and walked out of the room, looking for Rose.

 _Later_

"Please, Rose." Kortella begged the Floral Dancer, tugging on her cape. "Please finish the story."

"I don't want to right now." Rose said, sighing.

"Please." Kortella begged.

"How old are you again?" Rose asked. "You should act your age."

"In terms of years since my creation" Kortella said. "I'm about three."

"Fine." Rose said. "Act how old you look."

"But, you didn't finish the story." Kortella said. "You kind of dropped it off and didn't explain how you met Cassandra or how you evolved."

"That is true." Rose said, thinking.

"Yeah" Ace said, appearing in the doorway with Shadow next to him. "Finish it up.'

"Fine, fine." Rose said, sitting down. Everyone else sat down next to her.

"Now" Rose said, informatively. "This next part takes place about seven years after the first part. But, not much that's important to this story happened so, I'll just skip to the next part."

 _Rose's Story_

The door to Hoopa's house opened, a fifteen year old girl dressed in a green dress with a yellow shirt under it. She had on green leggings and green shoes. She wore a red glove on her right hand and a blue glove on her left. Attached to her wrists were flowers of the respective colors. Her hair was green and stuck up in some places. Her eyes were a peaceful red color. This is Rose.

She walked over to a flowered section in between Hoopa's house and May's house. There were several yellow, red, and blue flowers. Several of them were wilting however. Rose stared at them, thinking. Suddenly, an idea came to her. She summoned a small amount of Grass type energy mixed with Water type energy, holding it in a ball in her hands.

"Flowery Dew." She whispered, releasing the ball into the flowers, which shifted a little, but went back down to wilting. Rose got a discouraged look on her face. She put more energy into the flowers, trying her best to make them spring up and look beautiful. She'd been trying her Flowery Dew technique for months and hadn't progressed much with it. To her luck, she'd actually been able to combine the two types successfully. She'd trained with combining many different types, but she'd only been able to combine two at a time, which Hoopa had told her was an incredible feat on its own.

"You know, those have been dead for a long time." Came a voice from behind Rose. Rose turned around to see Hoopa, the woman who had raised her, arms folded over her chest, smiling at her charge's attempts.

"I know." Rose said. "That makes them the best targets."

"Why not try the flowers Professor Birch made for you?" Hoopa asked, pointing at said flowers.

"They drain too much of my energy." Rose said. "Plus, they draw out too much power. They'd disintegrate the flowers before they heal them."

"Well" Hoopa said, shrugging. "She did say they were more for combat than for healing. Well, you managed to successfully combine Grass and Water. That's good. Plus, you've absorbed enough of my aura with your Chlorophyll ability that you've strengthened through it."

"But, not good enough." Rose said. "I want to get stronger, but I just can't."

"Don't forget, kiddo" Hoopa said, sitting down next to the Roselia girl, who rolled her eyes at the nickname Hoopa had called her from their first meeting. "You can still evolve. You just need to keep practicing and fighting and getting stronger. It's like I said: you'll evolve when the time is right. Besides, those flowers up your power by a good deal."

"Easy for you to say." Rose said. "You've got another forme you can use."

"That's not something I'm proud of." Hoopa said. "I didn't earn that forme, I was born with it. And it has far too much of an evil influence for me. It makes me lose myself and I don't like it."

"Oh." Rose said, understanding. "But, I still don't get it. I haven't evolved yet. I've been training so hard, harder than May, and she's evolved already."

"Maybe something's missing." Hoopa theorized. "Not all Pokémon evolve through battling. Some take certain conditions or a special stone, held or otherwise, to evolve."

"How will I know what it takes for me to evolve?" Rose asked, looking at the only real mother figure she'd had (her mother died when Shadow was born and Ace's mother left with Darkora).

"You'll know." Hoopa said, putting her arm around Rose's shoulder and pulling her close. "All Pokémon can tell when they're near evolution. It's genetics. Just know that I'm rooting for you and I'll always be here for you, whether you evolve or not."

"Thanks." Rose said, leaning against Hoopa. "I needed that. You always know how to make me feel better."

"It's because I know you." Hoopa said, squeezing the closest thing to a daughter she'd ever had, a contented smile on her face.

"Hey" Hoopa said, looking at Rose. "I just remembered: I have an errand I need you to run."

"What is it?" Rose asked.

"Well" Hoopa said. "Since you're bored waiting for May to return from helping her mom in the lab, I figured you'd want to do something other than just wait. I need you to pick up a package for me in Petalburg."

"Thanks mom.' Rose said, getting up. Hoopa's eyes began to tear up; it happened every time Rose called her 'mom'; it made her feel so proud of herself. "I'll get right on it."

"Okay." Hoopa said, walking back into her house. "Don't be late for supper."

"I won't." Rose said as she began to walk down the path toward Oldale Town.

As Rose walked down the path out of Littleroot Town, she became lost in her own thoughts. Suddenly, she ran into something, which knocked her down.

She looked up, more disoriented than angry. What she had run into was a sign that said 'Welcome to Oldale'. She walked past the sign, walking to the Mart, which was a building with a blue roof. Inside, the clerk looked up from the magazine he was reading, waving at her.

Rose walked up to the checkout counter, waving back. The man behind the register stood up, cracking his back behind his blue apron. His brown hair and brown eyes complimented each other perfectly (rose had noted it before) as he stood up.

"So" he said, smiling at the Roselia girl. "Are you here for Hoopa's package?"

"Yeah." Rose said, nodding slightly. The clerk went into the back of the store, coming back out a minute later with a ten square inch brown package with a label on it that said 'Hoopa'.

"Here you go." The clerk said, handing Rose the package. "Anything else?"

"Do you guys still carry Tea Leaf Mints?" Rose asked.

"Yeah." The clerk said, pulling out a jar from behind the counter. Rose pulled out 25 Poké and paid for the mints. The clerk put five into her hand, two of which she popped into her mouth, the other three she put into her pocket.

Rose thanked the clerk and walked outside the store. Outside there seemed to be some sort of commotion going on.

A little girl was running from the direction of Petalburg Town, yelling for help. Rose ran over to the little girl, taking her by the shoulders.

"What's wrong?" she asked, her tone a little panicked.

"It's the Sharpedos" the girl said, her eyes wide. "They're attacking my sister and she needs help."

Rose's eyes widened. She knew the stories people told about the Sharpedos. They were a rough gang of pirates, former members of the criminal organization known as Team Aqua, which Arcey, Giratina, Lugia, and Ho-Oh had put a stop to, along with Team Magma. They were known for attacking people to achieve their goals. People were scared of them, but they could be handled. Hoopa had no fear of them, telling Rose that she shouldn't fear a bunch of bullies.

"Where are they?" Rose asked.

"I-in Petalburg Woods." The girl said, tears forming. "Hurry, before—before..."

"I'm going." Rose said, handing the girl the package. "Take this to the clerk in the Mart and tell him to hold onto this for a little bit longer. I'll come pick it up later."

"Thank you." The girl said as Rose took off for Petalburg Woods.

 _With Rose_

Rose ran down the path to Petalburg town. On the way, she ran past May's father, Norman's Gym. Norman, who was standing outside the Gym, talking to a Trainee (one who challenges the Gym Leader and is often trained personally by them), a boy with green hair and a white outfit, whose name was Wally, waved at Rose as she ran by. Norman saw the urgency in the Roselia girl's eyes and realized something was up.

"Wally" Norman said. "This could be the day you get some field experience."

"Really?" Wally asked, coughing a little.

"Sure.' Norman said. "Now, let's go inside and check all of our gear quickly and we can help Rose out."

"Got it." Wally said, the two of them ran back inside the Gym to make sure they had the correct equipment for the situation.

 _With Rose_

Rose made it into Petalburg Woods, quickly looking around for any sign of trouble. Suddenly, she sensed several power levels nearby, one of them showing signs of fear. Rose quickly ran towards the source of the power levels, her movements fast and powerful.

She arrived at the source to find two men and a woman dressed in blue captain's uniforms with bandanas around their heads, the woman in a captain's hat, identifying her as the leader. All three of them had red pupils in their black eyes, all three of them with near bloodlust in their eyes.

They were cornering a girl who looked to be about thirteen against a tree. She wore dark grey pants with lighter grey shoes. Her shirt and the gloves she wore were an ash grey color, though they seemed darker in the light of the forest. Around her neck was an orb that had three smaller orbs inside of it, one red, one yellow, one blue. The smaller orbs seemed to emit strange power. Her face showed innocence and joy (though at the moment it was heavily overshadowed by fear). Her hair was a medium grey color and it was very short. The top of it rose up in a curl that looked kind of like a hook. Her eyes were dark medium grey and shone like glass. She wore a sort of mask over them, sort of like a superhero's.

"What do you want?" the girl asked, continuing to edge away from the Sharpedo beings.

"You're essential to our plans." The woman said, growling a little. "Now come with us quietly and you won't be hurt."

"Hey!" Rose shouted at the Sharpedo, stepping in between them and the girl. "Leave her alone."

"Oh" the woman said, chuckling. "And, what are you gonna do if we don't?"

Rose didn't respond with words. Instead, she punched the man on the left, the force of her blow knocking him down. The other two simply looked at him for a few seconds, shocked expressions on their faces.

"Oh, you're gonna pay for that one." The Sharpedo woman said, turning to Rose, anger on her face and in her eyes.

All three of the Sharpedo moved toward Rose, who took two steps back, getting into a fighting position.

Rose fired a quick Energy Ball at the Sharpedo man on the left, knocking him down once again, this time unconscious. She then fired more Energy Balls at the other two Sharpedo, but they proved to be much more powerful than the other, simply swatting the Energy Balls away.

They were now close enough to Rose to engage her in hand to hand combat. Rose fought as hard as she could, trading blows with both of them, but they both overpowered her, punching her into the tree.

The Sharpedo woman charged up a ball of Water energy, the other man throwing punches into Rose's face.

The girl in grey simply watched the scene, scared and worried for Rose. Thinking quickly, she gathered a small amount of Fire type energy in her hands. Unlike standard Fire type energy, however, this Fire type energy was more ethereal.

"Sunny Day!" she shouted, firing the ball of energy at Rose. The Sharpedo man moved out of the way, the ball of Fire hitting Rose. Rose dropped to her knees, twitching for a second. Her nose was bleeding (from the punches), but otherwise she felt something strange, something she'd never felt before. She felt…energized.

Rose stood up, facing the Sharpedo man once again. He threw a punch at her, but she dodged it, moving around him and punching him in the back of his head. His skull smashed into the tree, knocking him unconscious.

"She's faster and stronger." The Sharpedo woman thought to herself. "Her ability must be Chlorophyll. That girl used Sunny Day on her."

"Well" the Sharpedo woman said, smirking as she walked over toward Rose. "It seems I will have some fun today."

Rose shot an Energy Ball, the energy Ball twice as big, fueled by the power of the Sunny Day (A/N: Sunny Day ups the power of Pokémon with Chlorophyll for energy attacks as well). The Sharpedo woman swatted it away once again.

"You may have powered up" she said, continuing to walk towards Rose. "But, you won't beat me with a simple energy attack. I'm a lot tougher than either of them."

"I won't let you take her!" Rose shouted, running toward the Sharpedo woman with a fist cloaked in Grass type energy. She threw a punch at the Sharpedo woman, who dodged and punched Rose in the stomach as hard as she could.

Rose felt every ounce of air escape her lungs forcefully as she dropped to her knees. Every bit of air she tried to inhale hurt like another punch. She coughed up blood as her head went spinning.

The Sharpedo woman kicked her in the chest, sending her flying into a tree. Rose crashed against the tree with enough force to split the tree in half. She slumped to the ground, panting and nearly unconscious.

The Sharpedo woman laughed, walking towards the Roselia girl. However, before she could get close enough to punch Rose, the grey clad girl stepped in between them.

"Don't hurt her!" she said, holding her arms out.

"Oh?" the Sharpedo woman said, laughing. "And, what are you gonna do?"

"I'm gonna use this." The girl said, summoning Ice type energy to her hand. Though, this Ice type energy seemed different than normal Ice type energy.

"What are you gonna do with that?" the Sharpedo woman asked, her confidence not wavering. "I'm resistant to Ice type attacks and I know that's not near enough Ice type energy to do anything against me."

"I'm gonna do this." The girl said, taking her hand with the Ice type energy in it and shoving it against her chest. The Ice type energy flowed through her, causing her body to glow whitish blue for a split second. However, a flash of light erupted from her for about five seconds. When it stopped she looked very different.

Her grey shoes had turned into purplish blue boots that were fuzzy (for the color think of PoPo from Ice Climbers) and went up to her knees. Her pants turned a similar shade of purplish blue, becoming more insulated. Her shirt turned into an icy blue color. Over it materialized a purplish blue winter jacket with fur on it and insulation inside. Her gloves turned the same shade of purplish blue and began to glow with Ice type energy. Around her neck materialized a fuzzy, ice blue colored scarf. The amulet around her neck morphed into a diamond shape, alternating between shades of blue depending on the angle in which it rested. Her face gained a determined expression, one with little fear and full of confidence. Her hair changed to an icy blue and stuck up in a spiky fashion, making it look hard and sharp. Her eyes changed from their usual grey to a dark blue, steely and determined. Her aura had changed as well. Before, it showed no affinity (meaning she was a Normal type), but now it showed a strong Ice type affinity.

The Sharpedo woman took a step back out of surprise at the girl's transformation. She hadn't expected the transformation.

"How did you do that?" she asked.

"I have the ability to transform depending on the type of power I imbue into myself." The girl said, her attitude having changed as well as her voice, which sounded more icy cold. "I've imbued myself with Ice type energy, which both raises the power of my Ice type moves and gives me new abilities accordingly along with making me now a primary Ice type."

"Well" the Sharpedo woman said, grinning. "Let's see if it makes a difference."

The two of them charged at each other, both of them summoning their respective energies into their fists. Their fists collided with a small explosion of Water and Ice.

"You're certainly stronger than before." The Sharpedo woman said as the Icy girl was pushing back with what seemed like equal force to her. "But, you're still not powerful enough to fight me on equal terms."

"We'll see." The girl said, throwing an Ice Punch into the Sharpedo woman's chest. The blow caused the Sharpedo woman to double over in pain. The girl then fired an Ice Beam into the Sharpedo woman's head. The Sharpedo woman flinched from the powerful stream of Ice energy hitting her.

Suddenly, faster than the Icy girl could react to, the Sharpedo woman threw a Brick Break into the Icy girl's face, knocking her back into a tree next to Rose. The Icy girl was hurt greatly from the Super Effective attack, several of her ribs potentially broken. She dropped to her knees, her forme changing back to her regular forme, the shock of it causing her to fall on the ground.

"A-are you alright?" Rose asked weakly, struggling to attempt to stand up.

"more or less." The girl said, chuckling a little. "Name's Cassandra. Cassandra Climas Castras."

"Rose." Rose said, coughing. "Rose Surade Darkstar."

"That's a nice name." Cassandra said.

"Yours too." Rose said.

"Thanks." Cassandra said.

"Do you have other formes you can turn into?" Rose asked. "That Ice type one was pretty cool."

"I have two others." Cassandra said, smiling a little.

"Cool." Rose said.

"Enough of this friendship stuff!" the Sharpedo woman shouted, charging up a ball of Water energy. "I'll take care of both of you in one fell swoop."

"Do you have any ideas on how to get out of this?" Cassandra asked.

"I've got one." Rose said. "But, I'll need a boost from Sunny Day to pull it off properly."

"Got it." Cassandra said, quickly summoning special Fire energy to empower Rose with.

Rose felt the waves of power washing over her. As the power reached its climax, she put her hands into the flowers attached to her wrist, the flowers glowing for a second. Her green hair began waving slightly and her eyes gained a small tint of purple.

Rose then spread her arms out wide, both of them glowing a bluish green color as Grass type energy and Water type energy flowing into them.

"Solar Storm!" Rose shouted, thrusting her hands together and firing off the energy she had through the flowers, amplifying it by an exponential amount. The energy razed the Sharpedo woman, causing her great pain. After the beam stopped, she stood for about two seconds before falling backwards, defeated.

"Wow." Cassandra said weakly. "You did it Rose."

"We did it, Cassandra." Rose said before falling over, unconscious and drained by the powerful Solar Storm fired through the power flowers (as Rose called them).

 _Later—May's house_

Rose blinked her eyes open, her vision blurry at first. When it cleared, the first person she saw was Hoopa, standing over her, her eyes tearing up.

"Rose" Hoopa said, hugging Rose tightly. "Oh my Arceo, I'm so glad you're awake. I was so worried."

"It's allright, mom." Rose said, hugging the Prankster Pokémon back. "I just over exerted myself."

"I know." Hoopa said, rubbing Rose's back. "It's funny how quickly I became like a mother that I worry for you every second."

"Ya did great!" May, who was sitting nearby, said, flashing Rose a thumbs-up.

May's outfit had changed since she had evolved. She now wore a dark grey, jagged shirt that ended at her midriff. She now wore dark grey pants with black boots that went up to her knees and had red fuzz inside of them. She still wore the black, fingerless gloves she always wore. She also had on a dark grey scarf, like before, but this one was thicker. Her face now showed a little more maturity than before (only in looks). Her hair was much longer than her previous evolution and it went down to her legs. It was black around the edges, but deep crimson red in the center. Her eyes were more slanted than her previous evolution's, but they were a darker blue than before.

"Thanks." Rose said, smiling at her best friend. "Where's Cassandra?"

"The Castform girl?" May asked. "She's in the next room over."

"Thanks." Rose said, carefully getting up and walking over to where Cassandra was. Cassandra saw her coming and waved.

"Hi, Rose." She said, smiling. "That was pretty awesome."

"Thanks." Rose said. "But, I'd never have been able to do that without you."

"That reminds me." Cassandra said, thinking. "How did we get here? I went unconscious before I saw anyone bring us here."

"That would have been us." A voice said from the hall. The owner of the voice, Norman, stepped into the room, waving at the two girls.

"Mister Birch!" Rose said, hugging the man. "Thanks!"

"That was a very dangerous thing you did." Norman said to Rose, his tone firm. "You could have been killed or worse. It's lucky you managed to knock them all unconscious, or you two wouldn't be here to hear this conversation."

"I know." Rose said. "But, Cassandra here was in danger. I wasn't gonna just let her get hurt. Not if I could help it."

"I know." Norman said, putting his hand on Rose's shoulder. "That's one of your best qualities: that desire to help others, even at the cost of your own life."

"Thanks I guess." Rose said.

"So" Norman said. "What are you gonna do now?"

"Recover a little." Rose said. "Hang out with May and Cassandra if she wants to."

"Sure." Cassandra said. "I think that will be fun."

"Yay!" Rose said. "So, what should we do?"

"We should go take on a few Gyms!" May said, jumping on top of May, pinning her to the ground. "We'd be really badass! I want to kick my dad's ass in a real fight!"

"That sounds fun." Cassandra said, smiling. "We could become super strong."

"Yep." May said, still on top of Rose, who nodded in agreement. "So, pops, whadaya say? Can we take on your Gym?"

"Sorry, honey." Norman said, shaking his head. "My Gym is a level five Gym. You have to have beaten four other Gyms to challenge mine."

"Fine then." May said, cracking her knuckles. "Challenge accepted."

"Well" Norman said. "The Gyms aren't accepting challengers right now, so you'll have to wait for a while."

"Awww!" May whined. "But, I wanna kick your ass!"

"Well" Norman said, ruffling his daughter's hair and laughing. "I guess you'll just have to wait, then."

"This sucks." May said, crossing her arms and getting a sort of pouty face. "I wanted to fight you."

"I know, honey." Norman said, laughing. "But, rules are rules."

"F #$ the rules!" Rose said, her and May standing side by side and striking poses, Cassandra in the middle, sitting down. "We're badasses!"

"Even still." Norman said. "You have to wait until you have the required number of Gyms beaten."

"Fine." May said. "When will they be open?"

"In about six months." Norman said.

"Six months?!" May shouted, her jaw dropping a little. "That's forever away."

"Well" Norman said. "I suggest you use this time to train and become stronger. The Gym Leaders aren't forgiving, nor are they weak."

"Well" May said, punching her right fist into her left hand. "We'll make 'em look weak."

"yeah." Cassandra and Rose said. "Let's do it!"

"Well" Norman said, chuckling. "I guess I can't stop you. I'll tell your mother to give you time off from the lab to work on training."

"Great." May said. She, Rose, and Cassandra went out of the house to set up a good place for them to train.

Norman watched them, Zorra standing beside him, along with Hoopa.

"They're gonna go far, aren't they?" Norman asked Hoopa.

"Yep." Hoopa said, smiling with pride at the girl she'd grown to call her daughter, a tear coming to her eye. "They'll go far."

 _With Rose, May, and Cassandra_

"So" Rose asked Cassandra. "Why were those Sharpedo chasing you?"

"Well" Cassandra said, looking down at the ground. "It's a bit of a story. When I was very young, my parents mysteriously left me at the doorstep of the Hoenn Weather Institute and two of the scientists there adopted me. My new parents were trying to figure out the full potential of my 'weather powers' as their called which are manifested in my Forecast ability, an ability which causes me to transform and change my affinities when certain types are imbued with my body (my adoptive mother was a Mismagius and my adoptive father was an Alakazam and therefore didn't exhibit this trait). So far we had discovered that the types Water, Fire, and Ice had a direct effect on my physical makeup, changing my types and appearances. Certain other types could increase my powers of that type, but they left my physical makeup unchanged. Among these were rock, Ground, and Electric. My parents had also discovered that I was capable of using a move that changed and increased in power if my aura and affinity was a different type than Normal. I was very proficient at this, being very young when I was placed in it. This is what the Sharpedo were searching for. They attacked our lab in search of this power."

 _Flashback—six months ago—Hoenn Weather Institute_

The scientist looked over the readings for his daughter's test. The readings were lower than the last time. He looked at it in confusion. His daughter was a very talented girl and could easily break her own records in a day. Losing progress was something she'd never done before. He didn't know whether or not to worry himself over it. It was just data, but if his daughter was becoming weaker as a result of the tests, then would it be wise to have her continue at the rate she was going? He knew about her condition, but could it be affecting her now?

"Cassandra?" he asked his daughter as she walked out of the experimentation room. "I just looked at your records. They're decreasing. Is something wrong?"

"I don't know.' Cassandra said. "I'm just feeling a little tired."

"Well" her father said, shrugging. "So long as it's nothing detrimental, it's alright. Do you want to eat?"

"Sure." Cassandra said. "I'm really hungry."

"Well, then." Her father said, laughing. "Go and eat. Your mother prepared something that smells really good."

"What is it?" Cassandra asked.

"I don't know." Her father shrugged, smiling. "She wouldn't tell me."

Cassandra walked into the kitchen, smelling the great aroma of the food her mother had prepared.

"Sit down honey." Her mother said, smiling. "I'll bring you out some food. I made your favorite."

"Yes!" Cassandra exclaimed, pumping her fist as her mother brought her food out and set it in front of her. Cassandra ate her food quickly, her mother laughing at her daughter's joy.

Suddenly, her mother's expression turned to nervous. She got quickly up and looked quietly out the door, her eyes widening. She quickly turned back to Cassandra, panic in her normally peaceful red eyes.

"Cassandra, dear." She said in a harsh whisper. "You must run from here. Very far away, even as far as Petalburg."

"But, why?" Cassandra asked, her mother shushing her by clamping her hand over her daughter's mouth.

"There are some very bad people in the laboratory." Her mother said, her voice urgent. "We'll make sure they don't find you, but you have to run."

"But, why?" Cassandra asked, her voice muffled by her mother's hand.

"Cassandra, do you trust me?" her mother asked, her voice sad. Cassandra nodded in understanding.

"Good." Her mother said, removing her hand. "Then you know you must run far away from here."

"Right." Cassandra said, understanding. She quickly and quietly got up and left through the back door, pausing as she heard the sounds of people entering the kitchen.

"Where's the girl?!" a female voice demanded.

"She's not here." Her mother said. Cassandra heard the sound of a powerful blow and her mother cried out in pain. Cassandra hid in the bushes near the institute as the owner of the female voice stormed out of the door, looking around (she was the woman Cassandra and Rose fought prior to the telling of this story). Not seeing Cassandra, she stormed back inside.

Cassandra took the opportunity and bolted away from the institute. She ran as fast as she could, using every skill her parents had taught her about evasion to avoid any pursuers that might have been near her.

Eventually, she stopped, looking back at the place she had called home for eight years, dropping to her knees and crying as she could no longer sense her parents' auras.

 _Present time_

Cassandra looked down at the ground, her eyes tearing up. She pulled her knees up to her chest, putting her head on them.

"That's so sad." Rose said, hugging Cassandra. May put her hand on the Castform girl's shoulder, giving it a gentle squeeze.

"We're here for ya!" she said, grinning. "We'll take care o' ya! Believe it!" (A/N: oh my god, did I just make a Naruto reference?)

"Th-thanks, guys." Cassandra said, sniffling. "That really means a lot to me."

"Welcome." May and Rose said, smiling.

"Now" May said, thinking. "There's a choice ahead of you."

"A choice?" Cassandra asked, confused.

"Yeah.' Rose said, catching on. "The choice of who's house you're gonna stay in tonight."

"Yeah." May said. "So, who's house is it gonna be? Mine or Rose's"

"That's so hard a choice." Cassandra said, thinking. "I can't decide."

"Then we should all three have a sleepover." May suggested. Rose and Cassandra all liked the idea.

"Who's house do we have it at?" Rose asked.

"How about both?" May asked, grinning. "We could swap houses every couple days or so."

"Sounds good to me." Rose said. "How about you, Cassandra?"

"I'll go with you guys wherever." Cassandra said, smiling. The three friends began running towards the woods, laughing together.

 _Present time_

"So, that's how you met Cassandra." Ace said, thinking. "But, how did you evolve? And what happened to Cassandra?"

"I'll have to tell that another time." Rose said, getting up and leaving the room.

" **Boo! Boo! Finish the story!"** Dakurai booed, her astral form materializing next to Shadow (though the only two people that had the capability to see or hear her were Ace and Shadow and Ace wasn't paying attention).

" _Dakurai, shush!"_ Shadow thought (since Dakurai resides in Shadow's mind, she can hear her thoughts like conversation). Ace snickered a little, causing Shadow to look at him.

"Well" Ace said, standing up. "No sense waiting for her to come back. We'll get the rest of the story tomorrow."

The others that were listening, Kortella, Shadow, and Darkora, all left the room to do different things while they waited for Rose to finish the story.

* * *

So, it seems that Rose has met a new friend. What more could this story hold for her and her two friends? Find out next chapter.

Rose was an idea submitted to me by Venatorix.

So, i'm not actually sure how many chapters this is gonna be to finish this arc. I actually thought it would take two and now three, but i'm sure it might go to more. Actually, i'm skipping a lot of details. I could probably write a full length fanfiction on the escapades of May, Rose, and Cassandra, but i won't (i don't have the time). At most, i'd assume five, but that's really pushing it. I really hope not though, because i want this to get back to the main story. I did this because i wanted to give Rose a good origin, but i don't want to spend a sh!tton of chapters writing it in the middle of another fic in which the flashback isn't necessary. But, i'm gonna finish it and get it back to the story that is Azure Light 2.


	8. Rose's Story Part Three: Test of Might

Chapter Seven: Rose's Story Part 3: Test of Might

 _Previously:_

 _-_ _ **"Good morning sleepyhead."**_

 _-_ _ **"I suppose you're wondering why I'm not dead. Well, it's because you didn't kill me! Now we can play together!"**_

 _-"I'm Rose."_

" _Cassandra."_

 _-"Leave her alone!"_

" _Oh, and what are you gonna do about it?"_

 _-"Got any tricks up your sleeve?"_

" _I've got one."_

 _-"Solar Storm!"_

 _-"You did good kid."_

 _-"Why were those guys chasing you?"_

" _For my power."_

 _-"You can stay with us."_

" _O-okay."_

 **Pokémon Azure Light 2: Chapter 7: Rose's Story Part 3: Test of Might**

Shadow sat up, looking around. The world around her looked so dark and eerie, though it wasn't real. She actually didn't remember falling asleep this time. She stood up, stretching her limbs and

" **Yay!"** the cheery voice shouted, its owner jumping on Shadow and holding onto her. **"You're back! Now we can play together!"**

"Alright." Shadow smiled and laughed a little. She had to admit, the childlike, formerly evil entity was growing on her. "So, what do you want to do?"

" **Weeelll."** Dakurai said, looking up and smiling (the way someone does when they're up to mischief). **"I was thinking of a really fun game we could play."**

"What is it?" Shadow asked suspiciously, picking up on the Darkling's tone.

" **Well…"** Dakurai said, instantaneously appearing next to Shadow and putting her hands on Shadow's shoulders. **"For this game you tell an embarrassing thing you know about yourself."**

"Wait" Shadow said, understanding the game. "Don't you have access to my memories? So, wouldn't this be just us telling stuff we already know?"

" **Well"** Dakurai said, shrugging. **"I only have access to a few of your memories. Mostly, it's recent, but I can see a few of your older memories. A lot of them are blocked by a Psychic block anyway. Some repressed ones even you can't easily open."**

"So" Shadow said, thinking. "Why don't you go first?"

" **Okay!"** Dakurai said, grinning. **"But, since I reside in your mind, I can tell something I know about you."**

"So, that's what you wanted." Shadow said, figuring out Dakurai's game. "Go ahead, then. Tell me what you know about me that I might not know."

" **Well, since I have access to your memories"** Dakurai said, grinning mischievously. **"I can see all of your little secrets."**

"Secrets?" Shadow asked, a little nervous.

" **Yeah!"** Dakurai said, grinning. **"Like how you want to…"**

Dakurai leaned over and whispered in Shadow's ear as if someone was listening and she didn't want them to hear. As she whispered, Shadow's face slowly became redder, her mouth slowly drew tighter, she slowly inhaled a gasping breath (which made an 'eep' sound) and her eyes slowly widened.

" **ooh, Shadow."** Dakurai said in a teasing tone. **"You naughty girl. Does your boyfriend know about that little fantasy? I'm guessing not since he's a part of it."**

"Well, I, uh…" Shadow stuttered, grabbing her arm and looking away from Dakurai.

" **Oh, you don't have to tell me about it."** Dakurai giggled. **"I already know** _ **all**_ **about it. And the rest of your little fantasies."**

Shadow gulped. She immediately realized that Dakurai wasn't as innocent as her personality suggested. She had set Shadow up for this, just to embarrass her. Shadow was glad the two of them were the only ones in her mind.

" _Clever girl."_ Shadow thought. _"It seems she's not as innocent as she lets on. Wait, if she knows about that, then what else could she know?"_

" **So"** Dakurai said, leaning on Shadow's shoulder and smiling smugly. **"It seems you're not as innocent as people believe about you either."**

"Wait" Shadow said, surprised. "How'd you hear that?"

" **We're in your mind, silly."** Dakurai said, giggling, wrapping an arm around Shadow and drawing circles on Shadow's chest with a finger. **"Even thoughts are heard like conversation. I saw what you were thinking about Ace a little bit ago. Scandalous."**

Shadow's face turned redder as Dakurai simply giggled at her embarrassment. The Shadow Spectre looked at Shadow's face for a second.

" **I better stop embarrassing you."** She said, smiling. **"Any redder and you'll explode."**

"Well" Shadow said. "You'd turn red too if somebody told you they knew your darkest secrets and stuff."

" **I know."** Dakurai said, laughing. **"But, I have no secrets. I live in your head, remember?"**

"Right." Shadow said.

" **But, I would say"** Dakurai said, smiling mischievously. **"With the way you both feel about each other, I'm surprised you two aren't closer if you know what I mean."**

"Th-That's none of your business!" Shadow shouted, her face as red as her eyes.

" **Well"** Dakurai said, her tone teasing. **"I'm stuck in here, so I'd have to see everything."**

"Maybe." Shadow said. "But, now I think it's time for me to wake up." Shadow turned to walk toward an exit she could make.

" **Bye!"** Dakurai called. **"We'll talk later!"**

"Alright.' Shadow said, smiling. For all the mischief, she figured Dakurai would be a good friend to have.

 _Shadow's room_

Shadow sat up in her bed gently as if she had woken up (which she did). To her surprise, Ace was once again sitting next to her bed.

"A-Ace?!" Shadow nearly exclaimed. "Why are you in here?"

"It's eleven thirty." Ace said. "You didn't wake up, so I figured you were still in here. I'm not suspicious of her, but I just want to make sure you're okay."

"H-how much did you hear this time?" Shadow asked, her face turning red as she remembered one of the topics of conversation she'd had with Dakurai. "D-did you hear anything…personal?"

"No." Ace said. "Why do you ask?"

Shadow pulled the blankets up over her head as her face burned like the sun.

"N-no reason." Shadow said from under the blankets.

"Well then." Ace said, standing up. "Should we hear the rest of Rose's story?"

"I think that would be lovely." Shadow said, coming out from under the covers. "Let me get dressed first."

"Right." Ace said, getting up and leaving Shadow's room so she could get dressed.

" **Wonder if he heard that?"** Dakurai said in a teasing voice, her astral forme appearing beside Shadow.

"He didn't." Shadow said. "I'd have known."

" **How?"** Dakurai asked.

"His face didn't turn red." Shadow said. "It definitely would have been redder."

" **Like yours was?"** Dakurai asked, a large smile on her face.

"Y-yeah." Shadow said, looking away from the Shadow Spectre.

" **Knew it!"** Dakurai cheered. **"Now, let's go hear the end of that story!"**

"Yep." Shadow said, walking out of her room.

 _With Rose_

"You guys must really like this story." Rose said as Ace, Kortella, Shadow, and Darkora sat down in front of the Roserade woman.

"Yep." They all said.

"Fine." Rose said, sighing. "I'll finish the story."

"Yay!" Mina cheered.

"This section" Rose said. "Takes place seven months after the previous part."

 _Rose's Story_

The Roselia girl, the Zoroark girl, and the Castform girl stood outside of the Gym, May and Rose cracking their knuckles and Cassandra simply looking on. She noticed a sign on the door that read 'Roxanne, the Rock Hard Gym Leader'.

"Rock type, eh?" Cassandra said, thinking.

"We've got this one in the bag!" May said, grinning. "We've got a Grass type and a Water type with us. We're gonna ROCK this Gym."

"Yeah.' Rose said, pulling a little Grass type energy into her hands. "Let's go rock 'em."

The three of them walked into the Gym, the leader, Roxanne, standing before them.

Roxanne wore a workout uniform (most Gym Leaders wore something easy to move in) that consisted of blue pants and a blue and orange shirt. Sha had a black band around her head, similar to a ninja and she wore a pendant with a rock on it.

"So" she said, smirking at them. "Norman's kid wants to fight. How very interesting."

"Yep." May said. "The three of us are gonna take you out."

"Well, hold on there, speedy." Roxanne said. "In here, only one on one is regulated."

"Who came up with that dumb idea?!" May shouted. "So you're saying only one of us gets to fight?!"

"The League came up with that idea." Roxanne said, her tone firm. "You want to argue about it, take it up with them."

"Maybe I will." May said, crossing her arms.

"Okay then." Roxanne said. "But, for now, pick your contender."

"Hmm." The three girls thought, trying to figure out which one of them would be best.

"Give us a second to discuss it." May said. Roxanne nodded, letting the girls walk outside to discuss it.

"So" May said, thinking as they walked outside. "Who should we send?"

"We need to plan for this one." Rose said. "I'm a good candidate because I know a lot of Grass type and status moves."

"I've got Rock Smash and Brick Break." May said. "Plus, my illusion abilities could help us out."

"I've been working on my Weather Ball." Cassandra said. "If I use my Water Forme, its power will be massive."

"I don't know.' Rose said. "If you don't pull it off correctly, it blows up in your face. Do you have it down well enough?"

"I'm not sure." Cassandra said, shrugging. "But, I've got other Water type moves if that one fails."

"Okay." Rose said. "Who's the best one for this?"

"I'd say we let you handle this one." May said. "See how you've handled your training."

"I understand." Rose said, nodding. "I'm ready."

"Yeah!" Cassandra said as the three of them walked back into the Gym.

"Are you ready?" Roxanne asked, smiling as Rose stepped up. "Because, once this starts, there will be no mercy from me."

"Oh, that's good." Rose said, smiling. "If you gave me any, I'd be unhappy it was unfair."

"You really want a fight, don't you?" Roxanne said.

"I want it to be fair." Rose said. "I don't fight often, but, when I do, I like it to be fair."

"Alright then." Roxanne said, getting into a fighting position. "Then, show me what you've got."

"Alright." Rose said, smiling. She threw her hand in the air, a ball of Grass type energy emitting from it. The ball flew into the air, exploding and spreading over the entire field. The brown, rocky ground beneath Rose and Roxanne turned green and some grass started growing out of it, but not much.

"What is this move?" Roxanne asked, confused.

"This move" Rose said, getting into her own fighting position. "Is my Grassy Terrain move. It powers up Grass type moves and gives me more energy."

"Well" Roxanne said, impressed. "You're the first challenger that I've faced in a long time who uses the aid of Status moves in battle."

"That's not the only status move I know." Rose said, a purple ball that looked like it was made of bubbles forming in her hand. "Have this."

Rose threw the ball, the ball striking Roxanne and coating her in a strange purple liquid.

Roxanne immediately tensed up, sucking in a quick breath. She knew what rose had used: the move known as Toxic, which poisoned a being into unconsciousness. The odd difference between Toxic and other poisoning moves was that Toxic's poison's strength built up over time. It was a very difficult move to learn. In fact, it once was speculated that every Pokémon was capable of learning Toxic, but reports later showed that it was a severely weakened version, which scientists later renamed as Poison Vapor. However, Roxanne knew the difference, and the poison affecting her was from the true Toxic.

" _She's tougher than she looks."_ Roxanne thought. _"I don't have a way to expel the poison, so until I go unconscious, I've got to beat her. She might be simply trying to draw this battle out. Though, she might not have used this Grassy Terrain move if she had, so, I'll be careful here. She might be trying to add to the damage."_

"Pretty good." Roxanne said, chuckling. "You may know how to use poison to your advantage, but I'm not so easily beaten. Get a load of my Ancient Power"

Roxanne summoned several rocks, which levitated around her. She fired them at Rose, who dodged all but one of them. The rock that hit her, though it was small, did a decent amount of damage, knocking the wind out of her.

Roxanne felt her power increase by a small amount, a secondary effect of the Ancient Power she was just using. She grinned, feeling that victory was easily hers, since her opponent was winded by such a weak attack. She prepared to use another Ancient Power when her opponent began to speak.

"That's pretty good." Rose said, gasping slightly for air. "But, I've got a few other tricks up my sleeve."

"Oh?" Roxanne asked, curious. "And, what might they be?"

"Well, first off" Rose said, snapping her fingers. "I've hidden quite a few surprises in the grass under you. For example, there's a Stun Spore inside there right now."

A ton of yellow spores wafted up from the grass, reaching Roxanne's breathing space. She tried to hold her breath, but eventually the spores entered her airways. Roxanne could literally feel her body slowing down as the toxin in the spores took effect. She began quickly calculating her options.

" _She's pretty good."_ Roxanne thought. _"I seriously underestimated her, something I, especially as a Gym Leader, should never have done. Now, I've got to deal with poison and paralysis at the same time. Who is this kid?! Not even Liza and Tate pull these kind of combos! Maybe, just maybe…"_

Roxanne summoned another Ancient Power, feeling her power increase, but not enough to compensate for the loss in speed she received from the paralysis. She quickly switched her attack to Rock Tomb, dropping rocks on Rose, which lowered her speed by trapping her inside of them (actually, that seems more like total immobilization).

Rose sent out a small burst of her aura to destroy the rocks around her, giving her back her full mobility. However, Roxanne was ready.

"You may have rendered yourself mobile again" She said, summoning another Ancient Power. "But, you won't beat me that easily."

She moved her hand forward to launch the Ancient Power. However, she found that she could not move, electric waves surrounding her body.

" _Damn it!"_ she thought. _"The paralysis has kicked in! Now I can't move for fifteen seconds!"_

"My turn to attack!" Rose shouted, holding her hand towards Roxanne. A powerful, purple beam shot out of her hand, piercing Roxanne, unlike a normal piercing, it was more like an ethereal piercing, one that didn't leave a mark.

Roxanne, however, felt it like she was being pierced as the powerful beam increased its power due to her own poisoning.

" _Venoshock!"_ Roxanne thought. _"Since I'm so badly poisoned, its power is increased at least twofold. It hurts even though I have a resistance to it, being Rock type. This girl is like a master strategist. I have to say, if she wins, she'll deserve it."_

"It's amazing that you've managed to deal this much damage to me" Roxanne said, smiling a little. "Without me dealing much to you."

"I prefer to fight defensively." Rose said, her two best friends behind her, cheering her on.

"Well, then." Roxanne said, planting her foot. "Let's see what you've got."

Roxanne lunged forward to attack Rose, but fell flat on her face, tripped by something. She looked behind her to see that several long strands of grass had wrapped themselves around her foot. This was what tripped her.

"Oh, I guess I forgot to mention." Rose said, her voice completely calm and confident. "I placed a Grass Knot under you after I summoned my Grassy Terrain. You didn't notice because you mostly stayed in the same place. Its power is also increased by the Grassy Terrain, making it even more powerful. Your own weight is added in as well. Being a Rock type, you're a bit heavier than Pokémon of most other types that are your size, so that's factored in as well as your weakness to Grass type attacks."

"You planned this battle out really well." Roxanne said, amazed.

"I've learned to read people" Rose said. "And learn their own strategies and fighting styles and plan around them. For example, you like to stand in one place and keep people at bay with special attacks. Your defenses are decent enough to let you withstand attacks from anyone who gets up close and personal. However, since you don't move much you wouldn't be too quick to notice the Grass Know I laid for you, which was concealed in the Grassy Terrain. The Toxic sapped just enough of your strength to let Venoshock do a hefty amount of damage. The paralysis further kept you from moving, making sure you wouldn't easily find out about the Grass Knot."

"I must say" Roxanne said, standing up. "You really know your stuff. But there's one thing you didn't count on."

"What's that?" Rose asked.

"This." Roxanne said, pulling out a strange orb. She broke it, the contents spilling onto her. She then stood up, looking rejuvenated somewhat.

"What was that?" Rose asked.

"That" Roxanne said, grinning at what she believed would be an easy victory. "Was a Full Heal. While it doesn't restore lost stamina, it does remove all status conditions you've placed upon me as well as removing your Grass Knot."

"If that's all" Rose said. "You're not guaranteed a victory."

"How's that so?" Roxanne asked.

"I can just use them all over again." Rose said, grinning.

"But" Roxanne said, chuckling. "Now that I know that you're going to use them, I'm going to avoid them."

"Well, then." Rose said, smiling. "I guess I'll just have to change my strategy."

"Your confidence impresses me." Roxanne said, chuckling as she summoned another Ancient Power. "I must say, you'd make a good Gym Leader."

"Not my thing." Rose said, summoning a ball of Grass type energy that had many little balls inside of it.

"Ancient Power!" Roxanne yelled, thrusting her hand forward, sending the rocks toward Rose.

"Bullet Seed!" Rose shouted, throwing the ball of Grass energy, which exploded into many tiny balls, each hitting a rock. Several of them struck Roxanne, who shielded herself with her arms. The tiny seeds hurt, but they weren't too damaging.

But, Rose wasn't finished with her attack. She snapped her fingers, several of the seeds sprouting on Roxanne's body. Energy flowed from Roxanne into the seeds, which supplied energy to Rose. Roxanne could only be amazed at the girl who was beating her so easily.

"Now to finish this off!" Rose said, summoning another ball of Grass energy, this one with some purple spots in it. "Tainted Energy Ball!"

Rose then threw the ball, which moved quickly towards Roxanne. Roxanne, having already taken a lot of damage from the rest of the battle, couldn't move fast enough to completely avoid the ball. The ball exploded on her, sending both Grass type and Poison type energy through her veins.

"You" Roxanne coughed. "You can combine types?"

"Yeah." Rose said. "It's a trait I've been working on for a while. It's best done with my own two types, Grass and Poison."

"Damn.' Roxanne said as she fell over, unconscious. "You're good, kid."

"Yeah" May and Cassandra said, running up to Rose and hugging her. "You did great!"

"Thanks, guys." Rose said, smiling. "Without your support, I don't think I could have done it."

"Here's your badge, miss.' The attendant watching the battle said, handing Rose what looked like a stone. Rose handed it to May, who put it in a case she carried to hold the badges.

"I'm hungry!" May said, her stomach growling.

"Me too." Cassandra said. "I saw a restaurant just near here that we could eat at."

"Sweet!" May shouted. "I'm up for it!"

 _Later_

"Man, that was awesome!" May said, clapping Rose on the back. "I can't believe you wrecked her like that!"

"Thanks." Rose said. "I did my best."

"Man" May said. "If only there were another couple guys in the Gym. All three of us would have had tons of fun!"

"Yeah." Cassandra said. "Imagine how it would have gone if you were fully evolved."

"Oh well." May said. "We still haven't figured out what it is to make her evolve. We've tried everything. Leaf Stones, battling, different times of day, feelings, the works."

"Yeah." Rose said. "I don't know why I can't evolve. It makes me so frustrated sometimes."

"Hey.' Cassandra said, putting her hand on Rose's shoulder. "It's alright. I can't even evolve."

"I know." Rose said. "But, I just think that I should have evolved already."

"Hey, maybe you just need the right motivation." May said. "My mom said she had to almost have her arm broken in a fight to evolve."

"Yeah." May said. "Just remember all the anime character that had to have motivation to get more powerful. Goku, Natsu, Kirito, and others all had to have some form of motivation to reach their full power. Don't worry, you'll find a way."

"I hope so." Rose said, sighing. "It's the one thing I've been striving for."

"Hey, guys." Cassandra said, looking down at a bush nearby. "What's this?"

The Castform girl reached down and picked up a white stone with a yellow circle in the middle. The other two girls looked at it with awe.

"What is it?" Rose asked.

"It's a Shiny Stone." May said, examining it. "It can help some species of Pokémon evolve."

"Hmm." Rose said. She touched the stone curiously, but nothing happened. She sighed softly, but May's excellent hearing picked up on it.

"Don't worry." May said. "I've heard that some evolutionary stones are special and if the emotions of the user aren't right, they won't activate. The Shiny Stone is a very complicated stone and every stone requires a different emotional state. Maybe it will work if you are in a different emotional state."

"Oh well." Cassandra said, pocketing the stone. "I'll hold on to it for now. It might come in handy later."

"So" Rose said. "Who's the next Gym Leader we should beat?"

"I think Brawly's our next Leader to take care of." May said, looking at a map she carried with her. "He lives in Dewford."

"That's across the inlet." Rose said, thinking. "We'd have to find a boat to take us there."

"My dad had a friend" Cassandra said. "Mr. Briney, a sailor. His house is right near here. I'll take us to it."

"Cool." May and Rose said as they followed their friend to a cottage near the sea. Cassandra knocked on the door and an older man in a black sailor captain's uniform opened the door.

"Cassandra!" he shouted, grabbing the Castform girl and hugging her tightly. "It's so good to see you."

"Hi, Mr. Briney." Cassandra said, smiling. "It's good to see you too."

"Come in, come in." Mr. Briney said, inviting the three girls inside. "I was just having tea with my granddaughter, Pepper."

At the mention of her name, a small girl of about nine years poked her head out of the doorway. She was barefoot and had on white shorts. She had on a white vest with a blue shirt under it. Her hair was blue and white, divided by stripes down her hair. She had large blue eyes that were cerulean in color. When she caught sight of Cassandra, her eyes widened and a giant smile spread across her lips.

"Cassie!" She shouted, tackling Cassandra to the ground and hugging her tightly. "I missed you so much! I haven't seen you in sooo loooong!"

"Sorry, Peeko." Cassandra said, hugging the Wingull girl back. "I ran into some bad people and was hiding from them."

"Were they pirates?" Peeko (that's what I'm gonna call her) asked, gasping, her eyes wide with fascination.

"Yeah.' Cassandra said, sadly. "They were. My two friends here have been helping me hide from them for a while."

"The Sharpedos are after you?" Mr. Briney asked, shocked.

"Yeah." Cassandra said. "They killed my parents and are chasing me because I'm the fruit of my father's research."

"I'm sorry." Mr. Briney said sadly, a sad sigh escaping his lips. "Your father was a good friend of mine. Your mother too. To hear that they have passed is truly a sad thing to hear."

"Yeah." Cassandra said. "It is."

"Well" Mr. Briney said, sighing. "I doubt you came here to see an old friend of your father's. Why are you here?"

"I'm sorry I didn't come sooner." Cassandra said, standing up with Peeko still clinging to her. "I was afraid the Sharpedos would track me here and hurt you and Peeko."

"I understand." Mr. Briney said. "And for that I thank you."

"Can you take us to Dewford?" Cassandra asked.

"Dewford?" Mr. Briney asked curiously. "Why would you want to go there?"

"To take on the Gym." May said, pounding her fist into her hand. "We're gonna take on my dad."

"Your father?" Mr. Briney asked. "Oh, you must be Norman's kid!"

"Yep." May said, grinning. "I'm gonna take his victory away."

"Good luck with that one, missy." Mr. Briney said. "Your father's a tough fighter. It'll be tough to take him on."

"I'm ready." May said. "I've been training for this moment for years. These two have been training too, and we're gonna wreck—his—sh!t!"

"Yeah!" Peeko shouted, jumping up and down and cheering. "You guys got this!"

"Allright." Mr. Briney said, putting on a captain's hat. "Let's set sail. Meet me at my ship in five minutes. I've got to make sure we're sail worthy."

"Aye aye, cap'n!" The four girls shouted, saluting Mr Briney. Mr. Briney chuckled and went outside.

Five minutes later, the girls walked outside to see his boat, all ready to go. They climbed onto it, Mr. Briney untying it from the dock it was on. He started the engine and the boat roared to life, taking them very rapidly towards Dewford.

 _In Dewford_

The boat stopped at the dock just next to Dewford, Mr. Briney jumping out, followed by May, Rose, Cassandra, and Peeko. They looked around at the sights of the city.

"It's a nice little town." May said, amazed. The other three girls agreed with her.

"It's actually been years since I've set foot in this town." Mr. Briney said, taking a large breath of the salty air of the place. "It still has that great salty smell though. It's different than back home."

"I can't tell the difference." May said, shrugging.

"Well" Mr. Briney said, turning around and facing May. "You haven't been out on the sea as long as I have. When you've sailed almost all your life, you can distinguish between the different salty smells of the ports."

"Interesting." Rose said.

"Well" Mr. Briney said, taking Peeko back to the ship. "We're gonna go sail to Slateport to pick up a few groceries. We'll be back in about an hour, so you should be finished with your Gym challenge by then. We'll meet up with you in the Mart. Just head there when you're finished. There should be enough for you three to do while you wait."

"Got it." The three girls said as Mr. Briney and Peeko left.

They walked over to the Gym, looking at it. There was a sign on the door that read: 'Brawly's Gym. Get ready to get pounded!'.

"So" May said, pulling out a guide she'd gotten. "The Gym here is a Fighting type Gym, so let's figure out our options now."

"I have resistance to Fighting type moves." Rose said. "And I know enough Status moves to handle most Pokémon, so I've got two for me."

"I'm weak to it." May said, thinking. "But, my illusion abilities could come in handy here. I also know Ariel Ace, so that's one for me."

"Two of my formes are weak to Fighting." Cassandra said. "But, I've got a wide enough repertoire that my other two formes can compensate, so I've got one for me."

"So" May said. "Who would we send?"

"I'd say Rose and you." Cassandra said. "I'm tough, but my Ice forme is my most powerful forme, and I don't really use the others because they cause me to use one emotion too much."

"That's right." Rose said, remembering. "That did happen during our training. The Fire one pulled too much anger to the forefront, while the Water one was sadder."

"Yeah." Cassandra said. "I don't want those emotions to get in my way while we're fighting. My father and I discovered this early in his study of me and we worked to try to fix it, but we never could."

"Well" May said. "Be ready in case you have to fight."

"Right." Cassandra said, nodding.

The three girls walked over to the Gym, stepping into the reception area. The attendant welcomed them in, showing them to the door. They opened it to see a mazelike room with many different paths. Well, until the lights turned off, that is.

The next thing May felt was something clinging to her and trembling softly. Had she not known what it was, she might have attacked it out of minor panic. That and she could see it (being a Dark type she had very good vision in the dark). It was Rose. Her eyes were wider and her breathing was faster.

"It's allright, Rose." She said, hugging her best friend and stroking her hair. "There's nothing to be afraid of."

Rose relaxed, her breathing and heart rate returning to normal. She clenched her fists and let go of May, moving her limbs to loosen them.

"You're scared of the dark?" Cassandra asked. "I didn't know that."

"I've been scared of the dark since I was little." Rose said. "My father exposed me to a powerful Dark type's aura when I was a child. Ever since, I've been afraid of the dark. Though, I'm getting over it little by little, I still have the fear."

"It's okay." Cassandra said. "I'm scared of heights. One time when I was seven, I almost fell off the Weather Institute's roof. My mother caught me and carried me away from the edge and back inside, telling me that if I fell off I could break my neck. Even though it was a simple thing every panicking mother says, I still refused to go near the edge of the Institute or near any height over twenty feet ever again."

"I've got my own fears as well." May said, smiling slightly (though the girls couldn't see it). "I've got minor claustrophobia. I don't do super well in tiny spaces, like a cramped boat cabin."

"It wasn't cramped in there." Cassandra said.

"Well" May said, shrugging (still unseen). "It's not major. I can handle it unless I'm smooshed close and it's too close to take a deep breath."

"Well" Cassandra said, chuckling. "It seems we all have something to be scared of. Well, let's get over them together."

"Alright." Rose and May said, smiling (still unseen). "Let's do it."

"First" May added. "Let's kick Brawly's ass!"

"Yeah!" Cassandra and Rose shouted their agreement. They felt their way through the maze until they reached a man in a workout uniform with a flashlight. This was Brawly.

"Hi, girls." He said, waving at the three challengers. "Roxanne told me you guys might be coming. Sorry about the lights. They've been buggy ever since we put in the new ones. We'll have to take this battle outside. I can't see in the dark either, so it really wouldn't work if none of the battlers could see."

"Okay." The three girls said as Brawly led them towards a back door of the Gym behind where he was standing.

Once outside, Brawly began proper introductions.

"I'm Brawly, the Gym Leader." Brawly said, waving. "This Gym is one on one for right now since several of the assistants I had here have left to grab some supplies in Mauville and they're also working on the lights. So, choose who's fighting carefully."

"I'm in." Cassandra said, stepping up. "It's my turn."

"Allright, then." Brawly said, getting into a fighting position. Cassandra also got into a fighting position, taking a breath to calm herself.

Brawly lunged at her, his hand charged with Fighting type energy. When he was right in front of Cassandra, however, she dodged his attack and kicked him in the stomach. Brawly felt the blow heavily. He jumped backwards to distance himself from the Castform girl.

" _She's tough."_ He thought, the blow still smarting. _"I haven't felt a blow like that in years. Not since my last battle with Norman. Speaking of which, I think that's his daughter over there."_

"You're pretty good, kid." Brawly said. "I haven't felt someone hit me that hard in years. You've got some power behind your blows. Who trained you, if I might ask?"

"I'm self-taught." Cassandra said, preparing a ball of Water type energy.

"Wait." Brawly said, looking at Cassandra. "What Water type move is that?"

"It's not a move." Cassandra said, smiling slightly.

"Then what is it?" Brawly asked.

"It's how I become more powerful." Cassandra said, placing the ball against her chest.

Cassandra's body shifted due to the energy flowing through her body. Her grey pants and shirt shifted into a watery blue, short sleeved dress that went down to her knees. Her shoes changed to a watery blue color. Her pendant around her neck changed its shape to that of a water droplet. Her gloves changed to a blue color. Her hair changed its shape to that of a drop of water, changing to a nice cerulean blue. Her eyes changed to the same color, becoming more liquid. Her aura changed to that of a Water type and intensified. She stood before Brawly, ready to fight.

"How did you do that?" Brawly asked, amazed at Cassandra's type shift.

"I can change my type" Cassandra said. "According to certain types of energy that I use and imbue myself with."

"Well, then." Brawly said, impressed. "That's good. But, can it help you beat me?"

"We'll see." Cassandra said, summoning a ball of energy in her hand. It glowed red, blue, and yellow, similar to her pendant in her normal forme.

"What attack is that?" Brawly asked. "I've never seen it before."

"This is called Weather Ball." Cassandra said. "Its type is determined by my type, so, right now, it's a Water type."

"Okay, then." Brawly said, tensing up. "Bring it on."

Cassandra threw the ball at Brawly. In midair, between her and Brawly, it shifted from three colors to one: blue. The ball struck Brawly in the chest, exploding with water. Brawly was knocked back powerfully, hitting a pole and falling unconscious.

"Wow!" May and Rose cheered, running up and high fiving Cassandra. Cassandra laughed, hugging her two closest friends.

"You knocked him out in two hits." May said, looking at Brawly. "How powerful is that Weather Ball attack?"

"It triples in power when I'm a type other than Normal." Cassandra said.

"Wow!" May said. "Guess Brawly's not so good defending against nonphysical attacks, but, damn!"

"Thanks." Cassandra said. "Now we should go wait up for Mr. Briney."

"Yeah." Rose said, chuckling. "Let's."

"Hold up." The attendant from the Gym said. "You need your badge."

She handed Cassandra a badge shaped like a fist. Cassandra took it and handed it to May, who put it in her badge case.

"Hey!" May said, thinking. "Now we have two badges. Let's celebrate two consecutive victories."

"We should grab some stuff at the Mart." Rose said. "And Mr. Briney and Peko can join in."

"Alright!" the other two girls cheered as they ran to the Mart.

 _In the Mart_

The three girls grabbed some sodas and walked over to the counter. They placed the sodas on the counter and went into the back of the store to grab some more things they'd need to celebrate.

In the back, the three girls scanned the aisles to find things. However, unbeknownst to them, three cloaked figures were behind them, hiding from their sight. When the three girls turned their backs, the figures struck.

Before any of the girls could register what happened, they were knocked unconscious and dragged stealthily away by the figures.

 _Present time_

"So, what happened?!" Kortella asked, eager to hear the rest.

"Sorry." Rose said. "I'm too tired to tell the rest now. I'll finish it tomorrow."

" **Aw, come on!"** Dakurai shouted from inside Shadow's mind.

"See you guys later." Rose said, sticking her tongue out, really enjoying being an ass at the moment, as she walked out of the room.

"Well" Ace said. "I'm gonna go train for a while. Later."

" **Can we play together again tonight?"** Dakurai asked Shadow, grinning.

"Allright." Shadow said, chuckling. They all went to their respective rooms, going to bed to wait for the next day.

* * *

what happened to the girls? Will they be okay, or will something else happen to them? Find out next chapter.

Well, i've hit a milestone. My first 4+ part arc (it's at least 4). Woohoo. I feel good about it.


	9. Rose's Story Part 4: Evolution's Light

Chapter Eight: Rose's Story Part Four: Evolution's Light

 _Previously:_

 _-"Let's take her on!"_

 _-"I'm Roxanne! See if you can beat me."_

 _-"It's my own powerful combo: Toxic mixed with Venoshock."_

 _-"You're tough. Here's your badge."_

 _-Who's next?"_

" _Brawly."_

 _-"This is my Water forme."_

 _The three girls were knocked unconscious by the blows and dragged away by the three cloaked figures._

 **Pokémon Azure Light 2: Chapter Eight: Rose's Story Part Four: Evolution's Light**

" **Morning sleepyhead !"** the cheery voice said as the Dark Empath blinked her eyes open, a strange sense of déjà vu coming over her all of a sudden. She then saw the reason: her doppelganger of sorts, Dakurai, was standing over her, staring down at her and smiling.

"Morning, Dakurai." Shadow said, yawning. "did you sleep well?"

" **No, silly."** Dakurai said, giggling. **"I don't sleep. I just give your mind some time to rest and then I wake it up to play."**

"Oh." Shadow said, understanding. "So, what do you want to do?"

" **Well"** Dakurai said. **"We could play truth or dare."**

"Yeah right." Shadow said, chuckling a little. "After yesterday, I know how you play. Even if we are only in my mind, you'd find some way to embarrass me."

" **Ya got me there."** Dakurai said, grinning. **"It's just so fun to mess with you and embarrass you."**

"I don't think so." Shadow said, crossing her arms.

" **Well, it's not like Ace'll find out."** Dakurai said, appearing behind Shadow and whispering in her ear. **"Everything we say in here is top secret, so we can talk about anything. Anything at all and it'll be just between the two of us. So, if you need to tell me something, just say my name and I'll listen."**

"Thanks." Shadow said. "But, I don't think I'm much for talking like that."

" **Shadow."** Dakurai said her tone more serious, but the seriousness in her voice and expression was mixed with another emotion Shadow couldn't easily identify (was it empathy?). **"I've seen your memories. I know a lot of what you've experienced."**

" **If you need to talk about anything, anything at all"** Dakurai said, her voice and face turning into an almost pleading expression. **"Even if you can't tell your boyfriend, please, please don't hesitate to come and talk to me."**

Shadow simply stared at the doppelganger, her mouth slightly open in confusion. She didn't know how to respond to her previous statement. Her shock and confusion was only compounded as Dakurai wrapped her arms around her in a tight hug. Shadow flinched at the unexpectedness of the hug, but eventually surrendered to it, hugging her doppelganger back.

" **I'm always here for you, Shadow."** Dakurai said, her voice sad. **"I'll never leave you."**

Shadow didn't know how to react to Dakurai's change of behavior. She still didn't know how to react to the fact that Dakurai wasn't an evil monster in her mind, trying to ravage her, but that was easier coming. Dakurai's behavior was slowly convincing her that she was good. Shadow even enjoyed her company, even though she would embarrass her without a moment's hesitation. She was like that childlike aspect of herself (or in some cases, Eon) that she'd long since left behind in order to become an adult and put away her inner demons to keep herself sane and stable, happy, carefree, and mischievous, but also ready to listen and be caring, an aspect Shadow had never forgotten. She couldn't hate Dakurai, no, that wasn't the emotion she'd felt. It was distrust at first, but the girl had shown herself to be fun and reliable.

"Thank you, Dakurai." Shadow said quietly.

" **You're welcome."** Dakurai said, smiling.

" **So"** the Shadow Spectre said, a grin appearing on her face (though Shadow couldn't see it). **"Wanna play—"**

"Fine." Shadow sighed. "I'll play Truth or Dare. But, no mature questions."

" **Allright, alright."** Dakurai said, chuckling. **"I won't."**

"Good." Shadow said.

So the two of them played Truth or Dare for a little bit of time until Shadow decided it was time for her to get up. The two of them waved good bye as Shadow's forme dissipated as her physical body woke up.

 _Shadow's room_

Shadow opened her eyes again (this time for real) and sat up in her bed. She reached over to her dresser and put on her necklace. She stretched and got out of bed, putting on her typical white and green garbs. She then walked out of her room, noticing Ace walking by her door.

"Hi, Ace." She waved at her best friend.

"Hey, Shadow." Ace waved back.

"Where's Rose?" Shadow asked, curious.

"No idea." Ace said, shrugging. "Want to find her?"

"Yeah.' Shadow said, closing her eyes and feeling out her sister. Locating her essence, her eyes snapped open.

"She's that way." Shadow pointed in front of her. Ace grabbed her hand and opened a portal into the Distortion World. They both stepped through, exiting in the room where Rose stayed.

Rose was sleeping, snoring quietly as she was having a peaceful dream.

"We should wake her up." Eon, who had just entered the room via her Flash Fire ability, said, grinning.

"I got this one." Ace said, walking up to where Rose's head lay on her pillow. He summoned a small amount of Nightmare energy to his fingers and touched them to Rose's forehead. Instantly, her face scrunched up. She started twitching a little bit, the nightmare affecting her. Suddenly, her eyes shot open, the Roserade woman looking at her uninvited guests.

"Why are you guys in my room?" Rose asked, confused.

"We want to hear the end of the story." Eon said.

"You woke me up from a nice, peaceful sleep" Rose said, her tone suggesting irritation. "because you want me to tell you a story?"

"Pretty much, yeah." Ace said. "You left us at a total cliffhanger last time and were being a total ass about it."

"Ugh, fine!" Rose said, getting up. She and the others walked out of her room into the living room where Kortella was already sitting, eager to hear the story.

"Well" Rose said, sitting down. "This part of the story is probably the last important part, so listen carefully."

"Okay." The others said, waiting.

"Allright." Rose began. "So, these cloaked figures had knocked me, May, and Cassandra unconscious and dragged us away to…"

 _Rose's Story_

Before any of the girls could register what happened, they were knocked unconscious and dragged stealthily away by the figures.

Unbeknownst to the three figures, Mr. Briney had pulled up in his boat with Peeko. He looked out and saw the scene unfold.

The three figures put the three girls in a small motorboat. The motorboat had a small engine that one of the figures activated. The engine roared to life, speeding the boat off away from the island.

Mr. Briney watched the boat, immediately after seeing it disappear, heading back towards Petalburg.

"Hey!" Peeko shouted, alarm in her voice. "Those guys are taking May, Rose, and Cassandra!"

"I know.' Mr. Briney said, holding his granddaughter close. "But, we can't do anything about it right now."

"We can go get help!" Peeko shouted.

"That's exactly what we're gonna do." Mr. Briney said, nodding.

 _In Petalburg_

Mr. Briney and Peeko walked to the Gym, Mr. Briney knocking on the door. Norman opened the door, his expression turning to surprise.

"Mr. Briney. Peeko." Norman said, gesturing the two of them in. "Come in."

"We're not here to chat Norman." Mr. Briney said, his tone grave. "We're here for your assistance."

"My assistance?" Norman asked. "What for?"

"Your daughter has been taken along with her two friends." Mr. Briney said, sighing. "I saw them when I was in Dewford. I'd taken them there to partake in a Gym battle and they were in the Mart waiting for me while I went to get supplies so I could escort them to Slateport. Whoever took them was good. It didn't look like May, Rose, and Cassandra had a chance to fight back."

"We need to tell my wife and Hoopa." Norman said. "They'll want to get involved."

"Hoopa?!" Mr. Briney almost exclaimed. "As in the Mythic?"

"I think so, yeah." Norman said, shrugging. "Though, she never goes by the title, she's got the capability to be a Mythic. She's already classified as a Legendary, so her being a Mythic isn't too farfetched."

"Well, then." Mr. Briney said. "I think we could use her help."

"I'll take you to our houses." Norman said, running down the path toward Littleroot Town. Mr. Briney and Peeko followed, Mr. Briney running and Peeko flying.

They arrived at the houses, Norman knocking on both of them. When Hoopa and Zorra opened their respective doors Norman explained to them what was going on by telling them that their daughters were missing. Both women had different, yet similar responses.

"What happened to my daughter?!" Zorra shouted, grabbing Mr. Briney's shirt and shaking him. The old sailor was slightly jarred by the Zoroark woman's strength.

"She was kidnapped." Mr. Briney stuttered. "Along with the other two she was with."

"You let my daughter and her friends get kidnapped?!" Hoopa shouted, tackling Mr. Briney to the ground and taking off one of the rings on her wrist. The wrist opened up to reveal a portal that seemed to lead to a place of the most intense hell. Mr. Briney looked at it with horror in his eyes. Peeko was hiding behind Zorra, who had stepped back from her best friend a couple steps.

"Where did they go?!" Hoopa shouted, startling Mr. Briney even more. "Tell me or I'll send you straight to hell!"

"I—I don't know." Mr. Briney stammered, Hoopa's fury intimidating him even more than Zorra's. "They left in the direction of Fortree I think."

"Then that's where we're going." Hoopa growled, throwing her ring up in the air. The ring opened to reveal a black portal. Peeko stared at the portal, amazed by Hoopa's skill.

"Everybody in!" Hoopa shouted, ushering everyone into the portal, stepping into it herself once they had. The portal then closed behind them, disappearing.

 _In an unknown location_

Rose blinked her eyes open slowly. She couldn't feel anything in the air around her, aura or essence wise. It was strange, she felt. She could tell she was in a kneeling position of sorts, but not much aside from that.

" _Where am I?"_ she thought. _"The last thing I remember is… the Mart."_

She couldn't place her last thoughts. The last thing she could cognitively place was the Mart, then blackness.

" _I should probably look around to see where I am"_ Rose thought to herself. _"and see if I can find May and Cassandra so we can get out of here and head to the third Gym we need to hit."_

Rose tried to move, but, she found that she couldn't move her arms. She looked at them to find that they were cuffed to the wall behind her, making a shape similar to a field goal. She tried pulling as hard as she could, but to no avail. The cuffs were far too strong for her to break with her own skills. She also noticed that her flowers were gone. Rose cursed to herself, knowing that without those she might not be able to escape.

"Wait, I know.' Rose said, getting an idea. She charged up Poison type energy in her hands and altered the energy slightly to make it more acidic. She touched it to the cuffs, but when she touched them, they gave her a shock that actually jolted her body."

" _Ouch!"_ she thought to herself. _"That hurt! These cuffs must take any type of elemental energy and reflect it back at the user, damaging them. It seems even Acid won't get me out of this one."_

Rose began to struggle against the cuffs with physical strength once again, though the effort proved to be as futile as the previous attempt. She simply could not break the cuffs. She was stuck there until either her friends came to rescue her or whoever was holding her and her friends captive came for her. She didn't know who had kidnapped them, but she did know that they were going to pay if they hurt her friends.

Suddenly, the door in front of her opened to reveal a sight Rose thought she'd never see again. It was the Sharpedo woman she and Cassandra had fought six months earlier when they'd first met. She looked at Rose with a sinister look filled with vengeance and bloodlust.

She was wearing a similar outfit to the one she was wearing before. However, this one had a green stripe on the shoulder.

She walked over to Rose and punched her in the stomach as hard as she could. Rose coughed up blood on the Sharpedo woman's shoes, leaning over.

Rose gasped, the air in her stomach being forced out and her breathing becoming difficult. She leaned as far as the cuffs would allow her to.

"You know" the Sharpedo woman said, chuckling a little as she grabbed Rose's hair forcefully, forcing her head up and making the Roselia girl look at her. "When you beat me those months ago, I couldn't believe it. I kept trying to figure it out. But, I didn't obsess over it. No, that's for weaklings."

The Sharpedo woman grinned evilly, enjoying tormenting her prisoner. She punched Rose across the face, a resounding crack coming from the bone on bone hit. The hit had so much force behind it that the cuff on Rose's left wrist loosened (not that the Sharpedo woman noticed).

Rose's vision was swimming, her head groggy. She couldn't focus and her head ached. She could swear some of her teeth were loose and blood was filling her mouth. She panted, spitting some out.

"You cause me a good deal of humiliation." The Sharpedo woman said, growling slightly. "I'm going to enjoy repaying you for it after we finish dealing with your Castform friend."

Rose was losing consciousness and the Sharpedo woman could tell. She didn't hit Rose again, but laughed evilly as she left the room, leaving Rose to her unconsciousness.

However, before she could slip into the sleep of unconsciousness, Rose summoned a small amount of Grass type energy and used Recover. It didn't heal much, but it did keep her from falling unconscious.

Rose began to pull at the cuff once again and, after about ten minutes, successfully ripped it from the wall. She then used the combined efforts of both hands to rip the other cuff from the wall, breaking them off of her wrist.

Her energy flowed back into her, as the cuffs had been restricting it. She summoned a good amount of Grass type energy and used her Recover, gaining back almost all of her stamina and healing some of the minor wounds she'd received.

"Got to find the others." Rose said, checking the door to see if anyone was on the other side. Sensing no one, she ripped the door off of it hinges, throwing it to the wall behind her. She exited the room she was in, running straight down the hall. She extended her senses to locate her two best friends.

Suddenly she jolted upright. She could sense May. She was right nearby. May walked cautiously in the direction she could sense the Zoroark girl's energy coming from.

Coming to a cell, she could sense May on the other side. She quickly shoved open the door, finding May restrained in a similar position to how she was previously. She was near unconscious and didn't respond to Rose entering the room. Blood trickled out of the side of her mouth and her clothes were a bit torn, but otherwise, she looked somewhat okay.

"May!" Rose cried, running over to her best friend and prying the cuffs off of her. May reacted at this point, looking up at her best friend, who hugged her, shedding tears.

"Rose." May said, smiling. "You made it to rescue me. I thought you would. I figured you'd be the first one out."

"Yeah.' Rose said. "I'm here now. Let's get Cassandra and get out of here. Do you know where she is?"

"No." May said. "I don't." We should find her."

"You're injured." Rose said, examining May. "We'll need to go slow."

"How'd you get less injured than me?" May said, her voice showing a slight hint of complaining.

"Unlike you" Rose said, hoisting her best friend up and putting her arm over her shoulder. "I learned how to use Recover."

"I didn't think I'd need it." May said, chuckling. "I know Giga Drain."

"Then use it on me." Rose said.

"Why?" May asked, confused.

"It'll heal you." Rose said. "Don't worry, I can use Recover to heal any damage you may do."

"Allright.' May said, doubt in her voice. She placed her hands on Rose's chest, absorbing energy from the Roselia girl. After about twenty seconds, May looked physically better, though not fully healed. Rose let go of her and she stood up straight, Rose using Recover to heal herself.

"Now" Rose said, the two of them running out the door. "Let's go grab Cassandra."

"Right." Said May, right on her heels.

They ran out into the hallway, extending their auras to try to sense their friend. Picking up a slight trace of her, Rose looked in the direction she sensed her.

"Got her aura.' Rose said, taking off running. May was still on her heels as Rose entered a set of double doors. Inside was a man in a lab coat leaning over Cassandra, who was restrained to a table by leather straps, a strap of leather covering her mouth and preventing her from speaking. Her eyes were wide with panic as the man touched a knife to her arm, the blade slicing the flesh.

"Don't worry." The man said, his tone sinister. "It'll all be over soon. When we've drained your full life force."

"Oh HELL no!" May shouted, moving with speed unseen and punching the scientist in the back of the head. He was moved by the force of her blow into the wall.

"Cassandra!" Rose shouted, freeing the Castform girl and hugging her. "You're allright."

"Rose.' Cassandra said, crying. "You guys came. You're my heroes."

"it's okay, Cassandra." Rose said. "We're here now. You're safe."

"You guys sure like to get on our nerves." The scientist said, standing up. "Well, I think it's time we stopped you."

"My turn to fight." May said, stepping up and cracking her knuckles with a grin on her face.

May and the scientist squared off, May making the first move. She lunged forward, her hand cloaked in Dark type energy and sharp points forming off of it, a Nocturn Claw. The concentrated Dark energy sliced across the scientist, cutting him.

"You're powerful." The scientist said, standing up. "But, you won't beat me. And, even if you do, you won't beat our boss."

"Shove it.' May said, firing a Dark Blast at the scientist, knocking him out.

"Cassie." May said, looking Cassandra in the eye. "You alright?"

"Y-yeah.' Cassandra said, nodding.

"Good.' May said. "Let's get out of here."

"Right.' Rose and Cassandra said, Rose picking Cassandra up and carrying her. They ran down the hallway to the only door at the end. They kicked open the door, walking out to find themselves in some sort of colosseum like area.

"Well" the Sharpedo woman said with slight irritation, noticing the three girls. "It seems our prisoners have escaped. "No matter. You three can fight for your freedom."

"Good." May said. "I owe you quite a few beatings for hurting my friends."

"Oh, you won't be fighting me." The woman said, grinning evilly as she walked away. "You'll be fighting our boss. Or, at least, he's the boss we've got since our old boss, Archie, left to go join Team Universal full time."

"Your boss?" Rose asked as the doors on the other side of the arena opened to reveal a very muscularly built man.

The man was dressed in a captain's uniform similar to the Sharpedo woman's, but his was more authoritative, a bit darker, with streaks of red on parts of it. His boots were black. He wore no hat, but he actually wore a bandana which sported the Greek alpha symbol. He had a goatee that was black, like his hair. His eyes were brown and he looked at the three girls with amusement.

"So" he said, his voice gruff, but still smooth. "You're the three that caused us trouble."

"That'd be us." May said, summoning Dark energy to her hands. "Now, move so we can leave."

"Sorry, ladies." The boss said, shaking his head. "No can do. You're not leaving this place."

"You wanna say that to my face?!" May shouted.

"Look, kid." The boss said, chuckling and shaking his head in amusement. "You're outmatched here. You might as well give up now."

"We don't give up." Rose said, putting Cassandra down and the two of them along with May getting into fighting positions. "And we won't lose here. We're leaving here and you will not stop us."

"Such bravery." The boss said, smiling a little. "If only some of our members here had such bravery as you. But, you're not leaving this hideout I promise you that."

"Bring it on!" May shouted, her eyes flashing.

"Show 'em what happens when they mess with the Sharpedos, Boss Matt." The Sharpedo woman said, stepping back to allow the fight to commence.

"Don't worry." Matt said, cracking his knuckles. "I will."

With that the fight began. May lunged forward with a Nocturn Claw. Matt grabbed her hand in midair and punched her in the face, knocking her back. May flew back toward Rose, who caught her.

"He's tough." May said, standing up. "We're gonna have to go all out on this guy."

"I don't have my flowers." Rose said, clenching her fist. "They took them."

"Damn it!" May said. "We might be at a disadvantage then."

"Let's go for it anyway." Cassandra said, summoning Ice type energy to her hand. "We have no other choice."

"Ha!" Matt taunted the three girls. "You can't beat me with Ice type energy!"

"It's not for an attack." Cassandra said. The Sharpedo woman they'd fought earlier gasped silently, knowing what Cassandra was about to do.

Cassandra put the Ice type energy to her chest, imbuing it with her body. Her clothing and aura changed to the Ice type, her hair becoming spiked and blue as well as her eyes.

"So" Matt said. "You know how to transform as well using that power. This must be what Shelby (A/N: that's the Sharpedo woman they fought earlier) warned me about. She's clearly more powerful now, easily twice, but it shouldn't be enough."

Cassandra summoned a massive amount of Ice type energy to her hands, forming it into swords. She lunged at Matt, Rose and May following, May with a Nocturn Claw, and Rose with a Floral Punch.

They collided with Matt, throwing massive punches and using their abilities. They traded blows, however, Matt prevailed, using a powerful blow to knock them all back.

"Okay." Rose said. "New plan. I say we use ranged attacks.'

"Right." May said, charging up a powerful Dark Ball. Cassandra summoned a ton of Ice type energy to create her signature move, Weather Ball, which looked like a flaming ball of Ice. Rose gathered an Energy Ball, which she added her own little touches to.

"Rose" May whispered harshly. "Don't you know Solarbeam?"

"Without my flowers" Rose said, making the Energy Ball bigger. "I can't charge it fast enough."

"Right." May said, clenching her teeth. "Well, then, let's use our strategy."

"Right!" Rose and Cassandra agreed, firing their attacks with May. The attacks all struck Matt, exploding on contact.

"You're gonna have to do better than that." Matt said, laughing.

"Man" Rose said. "This reminds me so much of season one of Dragon Ball Z."

"Except we're gonna beat him this time." May said, grinning.

"Let's go!" Cassandra shouted, forming Ice Blades once again. She lunged at Matt, swinging her blades. Matt grabbed the blades and broke them by crushing them. Cassandra only summoned more powerful blades, actually making a cut on Matt with one of her swings.

While Cassandra was attacking Matt, Rose summoned a purple ball of energy and threw it at Matt, the ball hitting him and absorbing into his skin.

"So" Matt said, looking at Rose. "You managed to land a Toxic on me. Well, it won't work. I'm far too tough for that to work."

"The Toxic may not work." Rose said, smiling. "But, this will."

Rose shot her Venoshock attack, the purple beams razing Matt, causing burning pain.

May then ran forward and fired her Dark Ball, shoving it into Matt's face. He recoiled, but grabbed May's wrist. May struggled to release herself, but to no avail.

"My turn." Matt said, throwing a punch charged with Fighting type energy into May's face so hard that it almost dislocated her jaw in addition to knocking her into the wall behind her. She slumped to the ground, unconscious.

"May!" Rose and Cassandra shouted, Rose running over to May while Cassandra fought with Matt.

May didn't respond as Rose looked her over.

"We'll beat him for you." Rose said, running back over to help Cassandra.

"Well." Matt said, chuckling. "She only took one of my Dynamic Punches before she was knocked out. It seems defense isn't her strong suit."

"It won't be yours either after this!" Rose shouted, running up to Matt and throwing a Poison infused punch that actually caused Matt to flinch, both from the force of the blow and from the Poison in it.

"Was that supposed to do something to me?" Matt asked, chuckling. He grabbed Rose's wrist and threw a powerful punch at her. Rose, however, dodged the punch and swung her body around Matt's, grabbing him in a headlock.

"Cassandra, now!" Rose shouted. Cassandra summoned powerful Ice Blades, leaping into the air and using gravity to accelerate herself so that she could drop her blades through Matt.

The blades pierced Matt, but didn't do much damage, disappearing immediately after they pierced him.

"That hurt." Matt said. "You're pretty tough."

"this is my most powerful forme." Cassandra said, her warrior's determination pumped up.

"But" Matt said, grinning. "It's weak to Fighting type attacks."

"And?" Cassandra said, not picking up on Matt's meaning. "What does that mean?"

"It means this!" Matt shouted, breaking free of Rose's grip and charging up Fighting type energy into his fist. He threw a hard punch that sent Cassandra flying. She hit the wall with enough force to make a large crater in the wall. She slumped to the ground, also unconscious as she shifted to her normal forme. Whether or not she had broken bones, it was unclear at this point.

"Cassandra!" Rose shouted, running over to Cassandra. But, before she could reach her, a powerful blast of Water type energy hit her and pushed her into the wall very hard.

"You kids are tough for your age." Matt said, walking over towards Cassandra. "I have to commend you on that. But, your skill has its limits. And, I'm about to show them."

"No!" Rose said, stepping in between Matt and Cassandra. "I won't let you hurt her!"

"If you're so willing to be killed first" Matt said. "I'll oblige you."

Matt punched Rose in the stomach, adding a Water Pulse to the punch, which knocked Rose backwards on top of Cassandra. Rose, however, was still conscious as she saw Matt prepare a massive ball of Water type energy with which to destroy them.

"Have this!" he shouted, throwing the energy ball.

Rose hugged Cassandra tightly, shielding her friend from the energy. The energy struck her, burning her skin and causing her great pain and causing her to scream out. When the blast finished, Rose was nearly dead, but somehow still conscious.

"I have to say, kid." Matt said, genuinely impressed. "You're easily the toughest one out of all your friends. But, I don't think you'll survive another blast."

Matt gathered another ball of Water type energy, almost the same size as the first. He simply stood over Rose, curious as to what she'd do.

"I'm sorry, Cassandra." Rose whispered into Cassandra's ear, crying both from the pain and her own sadness as she reached into Cassandra's pocket and grabbed the Shiny Stone inside of it. As she pulled it out, she saw that it was glowing. "But, this is the only way I can save us."

Rose accepted the energy that the Stone was outputting, allowing it to flow through her and imbue itself with her.

Rose started floating, Matt watching as a bright light enveloped her. Her body disappeared as her physical forme began transforming.

" _Cassandra."_ Rose thought as she felt herself being transformed (A/N: stone evolutions are more special and prominent than regular evolutions). _"I'm sorry. I need to protect us."_

" _You guys are my heroes."_ Rose heard Cassandra's voice in her head.

" _If you see me as your hero."_ Rose said, her thoughts firm. _"Then, that's what I'll become."_

The bright light around Rose dissipated, revealing Rose's new forme.

Rose was now wearing light green boots with yellow green tips that went up to her knees. She wore a green, long sleeved, swimsuit like piece of clothing that went partially down her legs. Its sleeves went down to her elbows. She still wore green gloves, but red and blue flowers formed and became attached to her wrists. She now had on a green overwear object that opened in the bottom like leaves. Around her neck, a leafy cape, which went down to her ankles formed, flowing like in a breeze. It was fastened by a red, rose petal circle that was missing one quarter of itself. Around her neck, a golden band formed, reflective and glowing. Her hair was white and was in the shape of a rose bud. Her eyes were redder and shone almost. Over her eyes, she wore a mask that resembled a mix between a superhero's mask and a masquerade mask.

Rose floated in the air about two feet off the ground. She was now about four inches taller, but it really didn't make much of a difference. Her fists were clenched inside the flowers that were attached to her wrists and her eyes were closed.

Her hair began to wave like she was going Super Saiyan, her cape flowing like the wind was blowing. Her eyes shot open, their color now purple. She looked at Matt, anger and hatred in her eyes.

" **Round two, mother #$er."** She said, her voice in a growl.

She lunged at Matt, pulling back her fist, which was infused with both Grass and Poison energies.

Matt punched at Rose's fist, his own fist cloaked in Water type energy. The two fists collided in midair, Water, Grass, and Poison energy exploding from the point of collision.

Matt and Rose were thrown back, the force of their blows great.

"You're pretty good, kid." Matt said, shaking his wrist. "I actually felt that one."

"You'll do more than feel it when I'm done with you." Rose said, charging up a purple orb in her flower hand. She threw her hand towards Matt, purple tendrils coming out of the orb and piercing Matt. The Poison from the Toxic Rose had used on him earlier was still in his system and the Venoshock Rose had just used was dealing massive damage to him, upped by the fact that she had not only evolved, but a strange power had overcome her.

" _How much more powerful has this girl become?!"_ Matt thought. _"before she couldn't even handle my power. Now she's not only handling it, she's matching it and quite possibly surpassing it! Her evolution was something, but this is something else!"_

"You're going to pay for hurting my friends!" Rose shouted, rushing towards Matt once again. Her flowered hand was cloaked with Grass type energy as she punched Matt in the face, adding a pulse of Grass type energy to the punch. Matt flew backwards, the Super Effective Grass type energy doing heavy damage to him. Rose's evolution had definitely given her a huge powerup.

Matt stood up, angered. He summoned blades of Water type energy, leaping at Rose once again.

Rose summoned her own blades made of Grass type energy, a powerful Leaf Blade. They lunged at each other, slashing wildly at each other. Their blades struck each other again and again, neither of them making a hit on each other.

Eventually, Rose jumped over Matt, kicking him in the head as she did so. Matt fell on his face, Rose landing on her feet.

"It's time you were shown what happens when you hurt innocent people." Rose said, gathering a strange, pulsating energy in between the flowers on her hands. The energy pulsed green and purple, both colors mixed with a sickly black shade.

"Poisoned Sun Burst!" Rose shouted, throwing the ball, which struck Matt in the chest, knocking him over and exploding, sending waves of Poison, Grass, and Fire type energies through him, wrecking him internally as well as externally.

Matt forced himself to stand up, trying to step towards Rose, but he was tripped by grass that had wrapped itself around his leg. When he hit the ground he fell unconscious.

Rose removed the flowers from her hands, her hair standing still and her eyes returning to their normal shade of red. She looked at her friends, tears coming to her eyes. She walked over and picked them both up, struggling to maintain their weight. She'd used up a lot of energy, both using her flowers and firing a powerful move like Poisoned Sun Burst. She walked through the door on the other side of the arena, pushing it open. Surprisingly, no one was stopping her as she walked out. The Sharpedo actually avoided her as she walked by, her power still being emitted from her body. She realized that she was in Lilycove, as evidenced by the large shopping center nearby.

Suddenly, she saw an unexpected sight: Hoopa, Norman, Zorra, Peeko, and Mr. Briney were walking into the shopping center, but Hoopa, who was in the back of the group, turned and saw her. She ran over to her, calling the others over.

Zorra and Norman took May while Mr. Briney took Cassandra. Hoopa wrapped her arms tightly around Rose, crying into her shoulder.

"Rose." Hoopa said in between sobs. "I thought I'd lost you forever."

"It's alright, mom." Rose said, hugging her mother back. "I'm right here now."

"I love you, Rose." Hoopa said, still crying.

"I love you too, mom." Rose said, squeezing her mother tightly.

"So" Norman said, interrupting the emotional moment. "We should go home."

"Yes." Hoopa said. "Let's."

 _A few months later_

"Rose, Rose!" May shouted, running into her best friend's room. Rose jolted awake, falling off her bed.

"What is it, May?" she asked, rubbing her head. "Why do you have to barge into my room like this?"

"I found this note from Cassandra." May said. "She's gone."

"What?!" Rose exclaimed. "Let me see."

May showed Rose the note. It read: ' _Rose and May, I wrote this to tell you that I have to go. I loved spending time with you, but I feel that it's time for me to continue my journey alone. I do hope you find who you're looking for and that you can live a happy life without me. With love, Cassandra_ '.

"Why would she leave?" Rose asked.

"I don't know." May said. "What do you think we should do?"

"Go find her." Rose said, standing up. She put on her uniform (she called it a uniform because it reminded her and May of a superhero costume.

"Right." May said, the two of them running out the door.

 _Present time_

"Did you find her?" Shadow asked.

"yeah." Rose said, sighing. "But, I don't want to talk about it."

"Fair enough." Ace said, standing up. "Let's give Rose some space. I'm sure this was a hard story to retell."

"Thanks guys." Rose said, wiping her moistening eyes.

Everyone cleared out of the room, leaving Rose in the quiet.

 _A few hours later—10:45 PM_

Suddenly, her phone went off, signifying that she had a text. She picked up her phone, looking at it. The text read: 'meet me at the cemetery near your place—M'

Rose got up and walked to the cemetery, releasing some of her aura to prevent any unpleasant company from wanting to have a not so nice conversation. As she entered the cemetery, she saw a figure standing near a gravestone.

Rose quickened her pace. She knew that figure, even she hadn't seen her in months. There was no mistaking it.

The two of them hugged each other, laughing quietly (they are in a cemetery).

"It's so good to see you." May said, looking at her best friend.

"You too." Rose said, smiling.

"You still look like a superhero, I see." May said, grinning.

"You still look like a scientist." Rose said, pointing to May's lab coat.

"Guilty as charged." May said. "So, I bet you're wondering why I asked you to come here."

"yeah, kinda." Rose said, chuckling.

"Well" May said. "I mostly just wanted to see you again. But, I also wanted to visit her grave and I wanted to do it with someone."

"I understand." Rose said. "It sucks we lost her."

"I know." May said, sighing. "But, it happened."

"May" Rose asked, looking at her friend. "Are you okay?"

"Not really." May said. "Being here isn't really the place I wanted to be before I died."

"I understand." Rose said. "Do you want to go back to where I'm staying and we can chat?"

"Sure." May said. "I'd like to catch up with you and maybe have a few sparring matches."

"Alright." Rose said, taking her best friend's hand as they walked out of the cemetery together.

As the left a single grave stood where they were standing. The ground around the grave grew slightly less gloomy, as if the being in the grave was smiling.

The tombstone read: 'Cassandra Castia: the girl who fought with emotions'.

* * *

So, the conclusion to the Rose's Story arc. This was so goddamn long that at times i actually had to write a good deal of another fic just to take a break from it. I loved it, but it was the longest arc i've written. Hope you enjoy. Next chapter might be a oneshot arc so i can build up to the main villain plot arc.


	10. The Stone Part One: Flashback

Chapter Nine: The Stone Part One: Flashback

* * *

 _This chapter may seem confusing at first, but there's a method to my madness. Trust me, the next chapter won't be like this one_

* * *

 _With Shadow_

" **It's okay. Let it out."** Dakurai said, hugging and stroking the crying Shadow. The two of them were inside Shadow's mind, as they had been for the past five hours, all of which Shadow had been crying. Shadow had simply come in and buried her face in Dakurai's chest and began to sob, Dakurai simply wrapping her arms around Shadow and stroking her. She had attempted to sing Shadow a lullaby to soothe her, but that had only made it worse. The Dark Empath had wrapped her arms around Dakurai, squeezing the Shadow Spectre and trying to drown her sorrows in her warm embrace.

" **Don't worry."** Dakurai said, comfortingly. **"I'm right here. I'll always be here. I promise."**

"*sniff* thank you, Dakurai." Shadow said, her voice full of sobs. "That really means a lot."

" **You wanna talk about it?"** Dakurai asked. **"I know I've already seen it, but talking will do you some good. Start at the beginning."**

"O—okay." Shadow said, regaining a small amount of her composure.

 _Flashback_

The synthoid yawned as she woke up. She stretched her limbs as she stood up and put on her clothes: a purple shirt and black pants. She combed her hair, which had somehow become wild during the night, down over her shoulders, whistling a little as she did so. She looked at herself in the mirror, giving her hair a small flick as she left the room, humming a happy song. (A/N: she's not ditzy like Mina, but she's cheery and a more positive—like a (severely) toned down version of Dakurai)

Coming out of the room she shared with Rose (Rose had managed to convince Arcey to let May stay with them for a while, but Arcey said May had to bunk with Rose since it was her idea), May yawned, putting her hand over her mouth to quiet it and muttering something about the floor being uncomfortable.

May had worn her black tank top and shorts, but insisted on wearing a lab coat over them. Her red and black hair was messy and wild (she left so she wouldn't wake Rose).

However, neither May nor Kortella was watching where they were going as they both collided with each other's walking patterns.

"Ow!" May said, rubbing her head. "What hit me?"

"Sorry." Kotella said, grinning. "I guess I wasn't looking where I was going."

"Wait." May said, looking Kortella over. "You're the synthoid, right?"

"Yeah" Kortella said, smiling. "I've been here for about four weeks now."

"Cool." May said, taking Kortella's arm and examining it. "I've always wanted to meet a synthoid. They're so cool."

"Th-thank you." Kortella said.

"Oh, you must be May." Came a soft voice from behind May and Kortella. "Rose told us about you."

"Who are you?" May asked, turning to the speaker, who was a girl dressed in white and green with black hair that had green highlights in it. She was also wearing a locket similar to the one Rose kept three of as well as a band that looked similar to the one she'd given Rose some time back. May couldn't place it, but there was a bit of familiarity about her.

"I'm Shadow." Shadow said, waving. "I'm Rose's sister."

"Sister?" May asked. "So, she met up with you after all? So, where's the other guy that was on the island? The boy?"

"Oh, you must mean my best friend, Ace." Shadow said. "Yeah, he's here."

" **More like boyfriend."** Dakurai said, her astral forme appearing next to Shadow, leaning on Shadow's shoulder and smiling in a teasing manner.

"Cool." May said. "So, how's Rose been?"

"She's been fine." Shadow said.

"She told us how you guys kicked ass at the Gyms." Kortella said, her eyes wide with fascination.

"Oh" May said, chuckling. "She told you guys about that, huh?"

"Yep." Kortella said, smiling. "You guys were really good."

"Thanks." May said. "But, we only got through five Gyms."

"She only told us about the first two." Shadow said.

"Well" May said. "The other three weren't all they were cracked up to be."

"What do you mean?" Shadow asked.

"Volkner was a pansy.' May said. "And Flannery was just pathetic. My dad was a challenge, but it was kind of boring."

"Boring?" Kortella asked.

"He pretty much had to rest after every attack." May said. "Getting there was an adventure, but the interesting stuff ended after Rose took down Aqua Admin Matt."

"That's where she stopped the story." Kortella said.

"Yeah." May said. "It's a looong story, so I'm guessing she told you in parts.'

"Four." Shadow said, holding up her hand.

"Well" May said. "I'm sure you guys enjoyed it."

"Yeah." Kortella said, nodding.

"By the way, Shadow." May said, looking at the Dark Empath's arm. "That's a nice band."

"Thanks.' Shadow said. "Rose gave it to me. She said you gave it to her to find out how it works."

"I did." May said. "So, have you figured it out yet?"

"No.' Shadow said. "She did say it fits me well, though."

"That it does." May observed.

Suddenly, Rose walked out of her room, rubbing her eyes. Her hair was a little wilder and she was wearing a green tank top and red underwear. She walked past Shadow, May, and Kortella, not really looking at them.

"Morning, sis." She said. "Morning May. Morning Tells (that's Rose's nickname for Kortella)."

"Morning Rose." The three of them responded.

"You guys are loud." Rose said. "I'm trying to sleep."

"Well, wake up, then." May said. "I'm bored of sleeping."

"Whatever." Rose said, cracking her back. "I'm gonna eat something and get my clothes from the wash."

A knock at the door interrupted Rose's quest to the kitchen. She went to the door, opening it and seeing a woman about five foot ten in height. She was in her thirties. She wore pink, high-heeled boots that went over her light purple leggings. She wore a short pink skirt that had a golden ring that went around her waist. She wore a light purple shirt that had no sleeves over a pink shirt that had short sleeves, both of them cutting off at her midriff. She wore light purple gloves that went almost up to her elbows, a golden ring on each wrist. She had a golden ring around her neck as well. Her hair was pink and went down over her shoulders, though it was also tied in a bun in the back. Parts of it had golden bands (imagine the things Zelda had in her hair in Skyward Sword) in it. She wore golden mini hoop earrings. Her eyes were green and golden, both at the same time, and showed intellect as well as prankster's mischief.

"Mom!" Rose shouted, jumping out and hugging the prankster Pokémon. "It's so good to see you!"

"Rose." The woman, Hoopa, said, looking at Rose. "It's good to see you too. And I see May's here. But, why are you dressed like that? It's not good for ya, kiddo. I mean, you are growing nicely, but you really shouldn't show it off to the world like that."

"Like what?" Rose asked, still tired. She looked down and realized she wasn't wearing her outfit. Her face turned slightly redder as she moved so she couldn't be seen from the outside of the Hall.

"M-My clothes are in the wash." Rose stammered, her mother enjoying every second of her embarrassment.

"Hey, I'm not judging." Hoopa said, walking in and putting her arm around Rose's shoulders. "Just don't let Palkia or Dialga see you. You'll never live it down."

"I know." Rose said. "My outfit's in the wash, so I'm just chilling in my under stuff until it's done."

"Well, don't catch a cold." Hoopa said, grinning. "You wouldn't want the 'treatment', now would you?"

Rose and May's eyes widened. They knew what the 'treatment' was. Hoopa had used it so many times on them that they whimpered softly just hearing it.

"What's 'the treatment'?" Kortella asked, not catching Hoopa's drift.

"The treatment" Hoopa said, looking at Kortella. "Is a special way I have of dealing with sickness in both Rose and May here. It's rather enjoyable (for me that is)."

"Oh." Kortella said, understanding.

"Wait a minute." Hoopa said, moving over to Kortella, Rose shutting the door to the Hall. "You're a synthoid, aren't you?"

"Yes." Kortella said, smiling. "My name is Kortella. Pleased to meet you."

"I really don't trust synthoids." Hoopa said, looking Kortella over.

"I'll vouch for her." Ace said, appearing beside Hoopa. Hoopa jumped backwards, not expecting the sudden appearance of the Nightmare Demon.

"Ace!" she exclaimed, hugging him. Ace hugged her back.

"When'd you get here?" Ace asked.

"Just now." Hoopa said.

"Oh." Ace said. "So, how've you been?"

"Fine." Hoopa said. "So, when'd you add a synthoid to the roster?"

"She's not part of the 'roster'." Ace said. "She's a friend and she's staying here as a guest."

"Why?" Hoopa asked. "Not that I doubt Arcey's judgement, but I don't think that this has many good outcomes."

"Kortella's harmless." Ace said, pointing to the synthoid girl, who was talking and laughing with Rose, May, and Shadow. "She wouldn't hurt anyone."

"Okay." Hoopa said, shrugging. "So, you reunited with Rose."

"Yeah." Ace said. "Turns out I had a sister as well. Darkora."

"Did Rose know?" Hoopa asked.

"No." Ace said. "She was taken by my mother when she was an infant. She didn't even know who I was."

"Oh." Hoopa said. "That's kinda funny."

"I know." Ace said. "By the way, Ho-Oh's coming to visit, so if you want to stay and meet her…"

"Oh, I planned on staying anyway." Hoopa said. "I finally got my aura purified so now I can enter this place. I'm never entering that other forme again."

"That's good." Ace said. "I'm sure Arcey wants to talk as well."

"So, how's Ho-Oh doing?" Hoopa asked. "You know, after the whole Lugia thing and all (A/N: the full story revealed in TLF—Ace fought Lugia, who was inflicted with Pokerus and became a monster, and eventually killed him)."

"She's doing surprisingly alright." Ace said, shrugging. "Then again, it has been almost eight years."

"Right." Hoopa said. "So, how are Arcey and her ghostly lover doing? I heard they're still as steamy as ever."

"Don't remind me." Ace said, shuddering.

"Also" Hoopa said, leaning closer to Ace, a teasing smile on her face. "I heard you and Shadow have been getting close."

"Yeah.' Ace said. "We've been going out for almost seven months now."

"Cool." Hoopa said. "So, how're your 'extracurricular activities' going?"

"Haven't even enrolled yet." Ace said, catching Hoopa's meaning.

"Well" Hoopa said, beginning to walk down the hallway. "I'll see you guys later."

"Later." The others in the room said, waving at Hoopa.

"So" Ace said, standing next to Shadow. "What's on the agenda for tonight?"

"Well" Rose said, thinking. "You and my sister are going to have steamy, passionate—"

Rose was interrupted by an elbow to her ribs from Shadow. She looked at her sister in surprise, not knowing how to take the look in her eyes. The look itself was one that suggested irritation.

"What the hell, sis?" Rose asked, not understanding.

"Not funny." Shadow said.

"Well, it was—oh." Rose said, knowing why it wasn't funny.

"So" Ace said, wrapping his arm around Shadow's shoulder. "What should we do?"

Shadow simply pulled him closer, shrugging.

 _Shadow's mind—present time_

"No!" Shadow cried. "I can't."

" **It's okay."** Dakurai said, stroking Shadow's hair. **"I understand you don't want to, but it will make you feel better."**

"C-can we do this later?" Shadow asked, sniffling a little. "I-I-I can't do this right now."

" **Allright."** Dakurai said softly. **"Just remember: I'll always be here when you want to talk."**

 _With Shadow—present time—outside Shadow's mind_

She sat up in her bed, where she'd been for the past ten hours, her eyes red and her cheeks wet. She stood up, trying to leave when two people stood in the doorway.

"You need to rest." Came the voice of Kortella.

"You need to drink something." Came the voice of Eon.

"No, I don't." Shadow said. "Okay, maybe the drink thing, but I don't need rest."

"Shadow." Eon said, crossing her arms and blocking her best friend's path. "You have been crying for ten hours. You need a little sleep. Actual sleep."

"No.' Shadow said. "I need to get out of this room."

"If you don't, we'll be forced to fight you." Kortella said.

"Then do it." Shadow said, calling a small amount of Dark energy to her hands.

Kortella walked up to Shadow, Shadow getting into a fighting stance.

Kortella then wrapped her arms around Shadow, hugging her. Shadow simply looked at her, confused.

"This is your attack?" she asked, confused.

"Yep." Kortella said. "The 'Friendship Hug of Ultimate Power'. Super effective on all types and always lands a critical hit."

Shadow smiled. Kortella always had that effect on people. She wrapped her arms around the synthoid girl, hugging her back and resting her head on top of Kortella's.

"Thanks." Shadow said. "That's really helpful."

"Yes." Kortella said softly. "It's a one hit KO."

Shadow giggled. Kortella was fun to be around at all times. She was almost the exact opposite as she was when they first encountered her in Alamos Town. She remembered how she'd encountered her at first.

 _Flashback_

"Wait." Shadow said, trying to understand what Ace was saying. "You brought the synthoid that attacked Alamos Town here?"

"Yep." Ace said. Behind him stood a girl who looked about thirteen with a dark purple shirt and black pants. She had long, blonde hair that went down past her shoulders. Her eyes were sky blue and seemed to sparkle. "But, don't worry. She's really nice and fun to be around."

"Hi!" she said cheerily, putting her hands on Shadow's legs and looking into her eyes (A/N: Shadow is sitting down). "I'm Kortella. "Nice to meet you!"

Shadow simply stared at the synthoid girl, not out of distrust, but because she was actually surprised at her personality.

"H-hi." Shadow said, smiling. "I'm Shadow. Nice to meet you too."

"You must be the girl Ace told me about." Kortella said, giggling. "Though his description didn't make you sound half as pretty as you actually are."

"Th-thank you." Shadow said, her face blushing a little.

"I think you and me are gonna have lots of fun." Kortella said, taking Shadow's hand and pulling her out of the room. Shadow laughed, realizing that she would most likely have fun with this girl.

 _Present time_

"So" Eon said, stepping up to Shadow and putting her hand on the Dark Empath's shoulder. "You should rest; take it easy for a few days."

"I understand." Shadow said. She looked down, tears welling up again. She grabbed Eon, squeezing her tightly.

"I know." Eon said, hugging Shadow, sadness in her voice. "I know. It's going to be hard, but we'll get through it together."

"I-I-I know." Shadow said, sniffing. "I know. Thank you, Eon."

"Hey, anytime." Eon said, hugging Shadow and rubbing her hand through her hair. "We're always here for you."

"Th-thank you." Shadow said, smiling. "That means a lot."

"Allright." Eon said, putting her arm around Shadow's shoulder, Kortella walking beside them. "Let's go eat."

 _Later—Shadow's mind_

" **Oh hey, you're back."** Dakurai said as Shadow appeared inside the void of her mind. **"Meal go well? I mean, you liked it, but how'd the talk go?"**

"I liked the food." Shadow said.

" **Well, that's good."** Dakurai said, smiling. **"So, you wanna talk more? I know you don't want to talk through it with your friends yet, but do you wanna talk about it with me some more?"**

"S-sure." Shadow said, sitting down. Dakurai sat next to her, putting her arm around her shoulder.

" **Take your time."** Dakurai said, leaning against Shadow, who leaned on her.

" **I still liked that other outfit better."** Dakurai said, referring to something she'd said the first time Shadow had encountered her.

"What other outfit?" Shadow asked.

" **Well"** Dakurai said, touching Shadow's forehead. **"This one that you wore in the past I'd created (and that you wore for that one occasion)."**

An image of an outfit popped into Shadow's head. The second it did, Shadow's face turned bright red, Dakurai snickering at her doppelganger's embarrassment.

"L-let's just keep talking.' Shadow said, trying to get her blush to go down.

 _Flashback—First Street Burger Joint_

"So" Ace said, looking at Shadow from across the table. "I heard that the new Crobatman movie is out at the theaters. Do you wanna go see it?"

"Sure." Shadow said, nodding. "That sounds great."

"Cool." Ace said. "So, do you want to get food now?"

"Sure." Shadow said. She and Ace stood up and walked over to the counter to order their food. Ace ordered a burger as did Shadow. After their food was ready, they got it and sat down. Eating their burgers, they continued their conversation.

"So" Ace asked. "How's it been going?"

"You still don't know how to have a date conversation, do you?" Shadow asked, smiling.

"Pretty much, yeah." Ace said. "But, I don't think my bad conversational skills were the cause of our first bad date."

"No" Shadow said, giggling. "That would be the fault of a certain flirty blonde Cresselia that we know." (A/N: Azure Light ch. 14)

"Yeah." Ace said. "Both our dates have gone wrong because of her. Ironic, it's almost like she's trying to break us up. But, Cressa would never do that. She's too ditzy to do something like that."

"Well" Shadow said, thinking. "She did start to rub your chest the first time we met." (A/N: Azure Light ch. 11)

"Yeah." Ace said, saying the word slowly. "That was awkward."

"Yeah" Shadow said, laughing. "And when she said 'rock solid', looking back it's funny."

"You were pretty jealous then." Ace said, laughing.

"Well" Shadow said, shrugging. She reached forward and put her hand on Ace's chest. "You do have a rock solid chest."

"I know." Ace said, smiling. "Cressa told me so."

"Well" Shadow said, leaning closer to Ace, her tone the slightest bit seductive. "I've got something that she doesn't have and it makes her sooo jealous."

"What?" Ace asked, his tone joking. "The ability to look good with a ripped shirt?"

"No." Shadow said, chuckling at Ace's response. "I've got you."

"Well." Ace said, leaning closer to Shadow. "How's about we show everyone else?"

"I'm game." Shadow said, smiling.

They leaned into a kiss, their hair moving slightly like in a breeze due to their heightened emotions. Some people looked at them, some smiling, others ignoring them.

After they had finished, they looked at each other, smiles on their faces.

"Wow." Shadow said. "That was pretty good."

"I know." Ace said. "But, it was a team effort."

"How modest of you." Shadow said, giggling.

"Well" Ace said, leaning back in his chair. "What do you want to do now, stay here for a couple minutes or head someplace else?"

"What do you have planned for me, Ace Hunter?" Shadow asked. "I'm yours for the afternoon, so let's make it memorable."

"Alright, then." Ace said, grinning slightly. "Where should we go?"

"I think we should head to the book shop." Shadow said, smiling. "I've got to pick up some stuff."

"Okay." Ace said, holding out his hand towards Shadow. She took his hand and they walked to the book store, entering it. Inside they saw three people that were very familiar.

The first person was a boy that was wearing grey shoes with grey shorts. He had on a grey tank top, which showed off his very muscular arms. He had grey hair with yellow streaks in it and was short. His eyes were brown and he wore a belt that said 'Pokémorph High School 20XX champions'.

The second person was a boy who had white shoes and blue pants. He had on a blue shirt and wore white gloves. His hair was white and went down to his shoulders, curling a little outward at the ends. His eyes were blue and seemed to show potential.

Next to the second boy was a girl who was taller than him, but not taller than the first boy. She wore bandages wrapped all around her upper chest from the midriff up (consider Erza's certain Requip outfit from Fairy Tail). Over it she wore a grey vest like jacket that had short sleeves. She wore short grey shorts that matched her grey shoes as well as grey gloves that were fingerless. Her hair was light grey and went all the way down her back. Her eyes were a dull grey, but had the slightest reddish tint to them.

"Chopper, Conner, Mira." Ace said, waving. "I didn't expect to see you guys here."

"Ace Hunter." Chopper, the first boy, said, high fiving Ace. "You haven't changed a bit since we graduated (A/N: this happened in between the events of this fic and the original Azure Light for those of you who haven't read the original)."

"You guys sure have." Ace said. "Conner, you've gotten a little taller and Mira's evolved."

"Well" Conner, the second boy said, crossing his arms. "At least you guys aren't making me sound like Krillin anymore."

"Oh yeah!" Chopper said, laughing. "It was all in good fun, bro."

"I thought it was funny." Mira, the girl, said, giggling. "Plus you were weaker than all of us."

"Well, you weren't very strong before you evolved." Conner said, not looking at Mira.

"Well" Mira said, leaning over to Conner's ear. "I need my boyfriend to protect me then. Now I can help take care of myself."

"So, it's official now?" Shadow asked, smiling.

"Well" Conner said, trying to figure out what to say.

"Yes." Mira said, squealing with delight. "He finally asked me out. It was great and he took me to this great restaurant. Unfortunately, Chopper had to tag along and constantly give Conner dating advice. I didn't mind him being there, but Conner had never been on a date before, so it was hard for him to actually do along with it well."

"Sounds like Conner." Ace shrugged. Conner crossed his arms once again.

"So, how've you been doing since we last met?" Chopper asked.

"Well" Ace said. "After we beat Zygarde, I kinda died."

"Yeah, we know." Conner said. "Took ya two weeks to get your ass back to this plane of existence and comfort your girlfriend."

"Well" Ace said. "I always had to recover energy like that, by going into a coma like state. It was Arcey's dumb fault that she forgot that I both had to do that and that I didn't have a heartbeat (A/N: Azure Light epilogue)."

"I heard that Dialgia and Palkia were drunk that day.' Shadow said, thinking back to the day. "Apparently, Giratina gave them beer and they drank too much."

"Not surprising." Ace said, sighing. "So, how have you guys been since graduation?"

"We've been good." Conner said. "We all live together now in an apartment."

"Cool." Ace said. "We've been still living in the Hall."

"How's Melody been?" Mira asked.

"She's been good." Ace said. "She has been training with her mentor, Kyurem, and has been getting really strong."

"That's good to hear." Chopper said, chuckling. "Maybe you and me can have another match again sometime."

"Cool." Ace said. "I'm waiting to see if you can beat me after all this time."

"Oh, I'll beat you." Chopper said, chuckling. "You'll regret challenging me this time."

"Bring it on, Machoke!" Ace taunted his friendly rival, getting into a fighting stance. "Let's see who's still got it."

"Oh, it is on now!" Chopper said, getting into a fighting stance.

Instantly, the two of them threw punches at each other, the force of the blow creating a small shockwave. The book store shook slightly and some books fell off of the shelves, but otherwise nothing was broken.

"guys." Conner said, standing in between the two friendly rivals. "Can we not do this here? This place almost kicked us out the last time something like this happened."

"Right." Ace and Chopped said, stopping their fight. They grinned at each other, knowing that they'd get another chance soon.

"So" Mira asked Ace and Shadow. "Do you want to grab a bite with us later? After this, we're gonna eat and catch a movie."

"That sounds fun." Shadow said, knowing Ace would instantly love to get more food. "We're in."

"Sweet." Mira said. "Just let us grab these books that we need and we'll meet up with you guys at the entrance."

"Cool." Ace said, giving Mira a thumbs-up. "We'll see you then."

Ace and Shadow went to one side of the store and Chopper, Conner, and Mira went to another side of the store.

"So" Ace said, looking at Shadow. "Why are we here?"

"I needed to pick up a book for Kortella." Shadow said. "She asked me to grab this comic book for her."

"Oh yeah." Ace said. "She did say she wanted it. Which one?"

"Crobatman Returns." Shadow said, looking at the comic book shelf. "It's supposed to be here."

"I have that one." Ace said. "She could just borrow it."

"She wanted her own copy." Shadow said. "Something about the pride of ownership or something."

"I hear that one." Ace said. "I like owning my own stuff, but hate borrowing other people's."

"True." Shadow said, looking on the shelves. "But, it's not here. I saw that it was. Where could it be?"

"Not sure." Ace said. "Maybe we're not looking right."

"What do you mean?" Shadow asked.

"Maybe we could just ask someone if they know where it is." Ace suggested.

"Okay." Shadow said. The two of them looked around until they found a worker. Shadow explained their problem and the worker took them to the location of the book. He pulled it off the shelf and gave it to Ace. As the worker walked away, Ace held the book above his head, humming the music from Legend of Zelda.

"You got a comic book." Shadow said, giggling. "Its entertaining value makes it worth the quest to find it."

"Woohoo!" Ace said, handing the book to Shadow. "We found it."

"Yep." Shadow said, smiling. "Thanks for helping me look."

"Welcome." Ace said. "It was a pleasure.'

"Why thank you." Shadow said, holding out her hand. Ace took it and the other one as well, the two of them looking into each other's eyes.

" **I ship it!"** Dakurai called from inside Shadow's mind, 'accidentally' using limited control of Shadow's body to move her closer to Ace. Shadow fell forward, landing in Ace's embrace. They kept looking into each other's eyes, smiling as Ace leaned into meet Shadow's lips with his own. They held the kiss for about thirty seconds, Chopper, Conner, and Mira coming up to them.

"Awww." Mira said, giggling. "Look at the romantic couple. How come you can't be more like that, Conner?"

"What are you talking about?" Conner asked.

"How come you're not as romantic as Ace?" Mira asked. "You should try to sweep me off my feet every once and a while."

"The last time I tried to sweep you off your feet." Conner said, chuckling. "I hit your head on the coffee table."

"That hurt." Chopper said. "I felt that one and you didn't even touch me."

"I know, right." Conner said. "It hurt me a little too, especially hearing the 'crack'."

"But still." Mira said. "You could be just a little more romantic with me."

"Whatever." Conner said, shrugging.

"So" Chopper said to Ace and Shadow. "Are we gonna eat or what?"

"Sure." Ace said, turning to them. "Just give us a minute to pay for this book and we'll meet you there."

"Right." Chopper said, the three of them turning. "See you then."

 _Present time—Shadow's mind_

" **It's alright."** Dakurai said, Shadow starting to cry again. **"You're okay."**

"I know." Shadow said, sniffling. "But, I'm still not ready to move on quite yet."

" **Completely understandable."** Dakurai said, nodding. **"Just think of something funny, like that Kirlia that randomly popped in here."**

"Oh yeah." Shadow said, laughing as she remembered the strange, blue haired Kirlia that had teleported into the area of Shadow's mind, only to teleport out five minutes later. The strangest part had to be that the Kirlia was sleeping the entire time. (A/N: this is for a pic on my Deviantart account: Serene's Adventure, a followup comic to RakkuGuy's Sleep Talk Part 2)

" **Wonder where she went."** Dakurai mused. **"That was strange though."**

"I know, right." Shadow said, laughing again. "It's just one of those random moments that you don't expect, but when it happens, it's really funny."

" **What about the time we went bungee jumping in here?"** Dakurai asked, laughing.

"That wasn't very fun." Shadow said, crossing her arms.

" **Oh, come on."** Dakurai said, nudging Shadow with her fist. **"We had fun."**

"That's not what I remember." Shadow said.

 _Flashback—Shadow's mind_

"Okay" Shadow said, sighing. "Remind me again why you want me to do this."

" **Oh, come on, Shadow!"** Dakurai said, standing over the gorge with Shadow. They both had bungee cords around their waists. **"It'll be fun. It's just bungee jumping."**

"'Fun' isn't the word I'd use." Shadow said, looking down the gorge. "How's this place even in my mind?"

" **I created it."** Dakurai said, looking down as well. **"I can do that to certain portions of your mind."**

"Why a gorge?" Shadow asked. "That doesn't sound very safe or fun."

" **Oh, come on!"** Dakurai said, pushing Shadow over the edge. **"Just have a little fun here, why don't you?"**

Shadow fell down the gorge, screaming all the way. The bungee cord caught her, leaving her hanging over the cliff and bouncing.

"What is the point of this again?" she asked her doppelganger.

" **It's a trust exercise."** Dakurai said, calling down to Shadow.

"Trust exercise?" Shadow asked. "How is this a trust exercise?"

" **You have to 'trust' that I'll come back for you in an hour."** Dakurai said, laughing as she disappeared from Shadow's sight.

"I swear, Dakurai." Shadow said, sighing. "If you hadn't already kicked me over this cliff."

 _Present time—Shadow's mind_

"I still don't see how that was fun." Shadow said, crossing her arms again.

" **Oh, come on."** Dakurai said, grinning. " **I came back for ya, didn't I?"**

"I don't like bungee jumping." Shadow said. "I never have and I never will."

" **This totally explains why Ace never took you to that one fair."** Dakurai said. **"you don't really care for any of the rides, do you?"**

"Not particularly." Shadow said. "Ace didn't either. He said they're boring and slow."

" **I can see why.'** Dakurai said. **"So, you gonna stay or go? I mean, I don't care either way, I'm still here to keep you company, but I think you should head outside and get some fresh air."**

"I guess you're right." Shadow said, standing up and stretching. "I don't need to be stuck in here for too long."

Shadow disappeared from the realm of her mind, leaving Dakurai to her own devices.

 _Outside the Hall of Origins_

Shadow walked out to see Rose sitting on the cliff that jutted out from the Hall of Origins. She went and sat down next to her sister, Rose turning to look at her.

"You know." She said, sighing sadly. "When I first found you guys, I thought that we'd live together happily, not a problem to worry about in our entire lives."

"I thought something similar." Shadow said, sighing as tears escaped her eyes. "I just wanted to live happily. I didn't want him to go do something so stupid."

"Well" Rose said. "It was Ace."

"I know.' Shadow said, burying her head in Rose's chest. "But, why did he have to go do it? Why'd he have to fight that monster?"

"I don't know." Rose said, holding her younger sister close. "All I know is that he wouldn't have wanted you to be like this."

"If only I'd have stopped him." Shadow said. "If only I'd have told him not to go. Not to do this."

"I tried to stop him too." Came the voice of Alice, the teenage Audino girl sitting down next to Shadow, putting her hand on her back and rubbing in small circles which gave Shadow some comfort. "But, you know Ace. He was going to fight him, no matter what."

 _Flashback—twenty hours ago_

"What's going on in Alamos Town?!" Ace shouted too Mewtwo, who was monitoring the city with his Psychic powers. Something had happened in Alamos Town and no one knew what it was.

"I don't know." Mewtwo said, rubbing his head. "It's fuzzy."

"I need to know." Ace said. "I can't just leave them if there's something terrible happening. I'm going."

"Wait, Ace." Xerneas, who teleported in, said, holding out her arm to block Ace's path. "If you go to Alamos Town, you'll die."

"What are you talking about?" Ace asked.

"I've seen the future." Xerneas said. "You die when you go to Alamos Town. Please don't do this."

"I have to go." Ace said, using Shadow Force.

"Where'd Ace go?" Shadow asked, entering the room.

"He went to Alamos Town to deal with some strange thing happening." Mewtwo said. "I don't like it. There's a strange presence there that gives me unease."

"Why'd you let him go, then?" Shadow asked.

"I couldn't stop him." Mewtwo said, sighing. "You know how he gets. He'll go handle this and maybe be back quickly. Hopefully."

"I hope so." Shadow said. "Something about this gives me unease as well."

 _With Ace_

The Dark type stepped out of his Shadow Force portal, looking around Alamos Town, horrified. The place was nearly utterly destroyed, like a huge explosion had gone off in the middle of it.

A familiar figure ran up to Ace, grabbing onto his arm.

"Ace!" Alice said, hugging Ace, fear in her voice and movements. "I'm so glad you're here! It's gone! She's gone!"

"What?" Ace asked. "Who's gone?"

"Grandmother." Alice said, holding tightly onto Ace's arm. Ace's eyes widened, horror in them.

"What happened?" he asked, putting his hands on Alice's shoulders. "What happened to her?"

"Th-this man in golden armor" Alice said as best she could. "He destroyed the town. Grandmother tried to talk him out of it, but he—he—"

Alice began crying, burying her face in Ace's chest. Ace held the Audino girl close, hushing her.

"Listen." Ace said, his tone sad. "I've got to stop this guy. I'll open a portal to the Hall for you. You enter it and stay there. Tell Shadow I won't be back until I stop this monster."

"But, Ace." Alice said. "You're not powerful enough."

"We'll never know, will we?" Ace asked, slight humor in his voice. He picked Alice up and placed her in a dark purple portal. Alice appeared in the Hall of Origins immediately after.

"So" Ace said, entering his Nightmare Forme, his hair turning snow white and his eyes turning blood red. "Let's go kill us a synthoid."

 _Later_

Ace came upon the golden clad synthoid, Destronix.

"You're not going to get away with this." Ace said, his aura flaring.

"Ace Hunter." Destronix said, chuckling. "I was wondering when you'd show up."

"It ends here Destronix." Ace said. "You won't hurt anyone else."

"Are you so sure?" Destronix asked, chuckling. "I don't think you're strong enough to stop me, even in your so called 'Nightmare Forme'."

"This isn't my strongest forme." Ace said, unleashing every bit of his Dark power.

His skin turned as black as night, his hair lengthening and becoming like a fire. His eyes became larger and seemed to be even redder. His scarf became like a flame, flowing upwards and burning. His aura burned with a fire, Dark and chaotic.

"So" Destronix said, impressed. "This is your final forme. Impressive, but still not enough."

" _ **We'll see."**_ Ace said, rushing forward with a powerful blow. The two of them exchanged blows for hours, neither giving in. Finally, Destronix landed a powerful blow on Ace's arm, breaking it.

" **You're pretty good, Hunter."** Destronix said, his golden armor glowing as he stood in front of Ace, the latter clutching his arm. **"You really are the one who beat Zygarde. I'm truly impressed that you've managed to survive this long."**

" _Damn it!"_ Ace thought, trying desperately to think of an option he could take. _"He's strong! Even my Nightmare Pokéforme is hard pressed to fight him!"_

" _ **I'm"**_ Ace said, clutching his right arm and panting as his black blood poured onto the ground. His skin was black and his hair white and longer and his eyes red while his red scarf had become like a fire. _**"a lot tougher than you think."**_

" **Funny."** Destronix said, chuckling as he summoned two golden balls of Light to his hands. **"The Gardevoir girl would probably say the same thing if I fight her. In fact, those might just be her final words before I snap her neck."**

Ace's eyes widened, both out of shock and anger. His expression turned from exhausted to unbelievably pissed off as a large Dark energy sphere appeared in his hands.

" _ **You're going to pay for that!"**_ Ace shouted as his aura skyrocketed, despite his lack of energy earlier. _**"Focus Energy: Level Three!"**_

Ace's body flashed white for about three seconds as the power of Focus Energy poured through his veins, shooting his power level to far higher than he'd ever gone before. He clenched his body as he struggled to maintain the power he was reaching.

" **Ha!"** Destronix said, laughing at the sight of his opponent. **"Your body can't handle that kind of energy! You'll die before you get anywhere near the level that's necessary to beat me."**

" _ **I will stop you!"**_ Ace shouted, lunging toward the Light type synthoid. _**"For all those you've hurt!"**_

Destronix summoned his own Light energy to fight Ace with. The two met in the middle with a clash of the two polar opposite energies.

The area exploded with the energies, the explosion dying down to reveal Destronix standing over a collapsed, but still conscious Ace.

"You had such potential." Destronix said. "You could have been much more powerful, but you chose to give up your power."

"Y-You won't win." Ace said, coughing out blood. "Even if you defeat me, another will arise and stop you. Evil will never win."

"Don't care." Destronix said, firing a blast at Ace, an explosion resulting from it. When the explosion cleared, Ace wasn't there anymore and a pile of dust lay where his body was.

 _At the Hall of Origin_

"NOOOO!" Shadow screamed as a feeling like her heart was being ripped out of her chest washed over her. She dropped to her knees, sobbing. Arcey walked in, feeling the loss of Ace's aura. She looked at Shadow, who was crying and walked over to her, kneeling down next to her.

"What happened?" She asked as Shadow buried her face in Arcey's chest, her sobs being muffled by Arcey's clothing.

"He's gone." Shadow said, still sobbing. "Ace is gone."

* * *

Oh no! IS Ace dead?! How will Shadow cope with this (other than how she is in tthe chapter)? Will she try to take on Destronix herslef, motivated by revenge? Find out next chapter.


	11. The Stone Part Two: Return

Chapter Ten: The Stone Part Two: Return

 _(A/N: Okay, i have no excuse for not uploading this in like a month or so. I started my fic, Underschool and it kinda took over. I don't think i could make an entire 6000 word chapter and hope to get it done quickly. So, i've decided that I'm going to make the chapters shorter (around 2000 words) so that i can upload them more frequently. I apologize deeply for not uploading this more. So, since i'm here, thank you for reading and such. I hope to upload these much more often. WEll, on to the fic)_

 _Previously:_

 _(A/N: I'm gonna attempt to do this 'previously' section like this because doing the normal way would be confusing-and, it's been like a month)_

 _Shadow was crying due to some unexplained sorrow. Dakurai, Eon, Kortella, and Rose all comfort her, but she's still sad. It's revealed that the reason that she's sad is because Ace went to fight Destronix and died in the process, Destronix beating him. We now go to Shadow as she's trying to cope with this._

 _With Shadow (ten days after the previous chapter)_

The five shadow demons advanced on the Dark Empath, claws bared and Darkness in their hands. Shadow summoned her own Darkness and charged at them, using a Dark Claw on one and slicing it to ribbons. She struck the one next to it with a roundhouse kick that decapitated it. The third one lunged at her, but she punched her fist through its chest, rupturing its heart and killing it.

The fourth one blasted a powerful Dark Blast at Shadow, but Shadow fired her own in response, her Blast overpowering the one from the monster and killing it. The fifth one moved behind her, but Shadow elbowed it in the face so hard that it flew into a tree behind her.

Shadow looked at her work, unsatisfied. She had expected to feel something more out of her victory, but all she felt was the desire for more.

Her wish was granted as more powerful shadow demons emerged from the ground. Shadow emotionlessly fired powerful blasts of Dark energy at them, killing quite a lot of them. However, the more she killed, the more that came, each stronger than the last. Shadow continued to fight, but eventually the shadow demons began to land hits on her, slicing her clothes and drawing ribbons of blood from the Dark Empath. Shadow, however, didn't back down as she continued her powerful brawl with the shadow demons, her Dark powers outmatching theirs. Eventually, a shadow demon that resembled a king emerged from the trees. Shadow got into a fighting position as the two of them squared off.

The king of the shadow demons lunged at Shadow, thrusting his dark, clawed hand forward. Shadow dodged, punching the king's arm as hard as she could. There was a resounding snap as the bones in the king's arm broke into several pieces. He cried in pain as Shadow then punched him in the head, breaking his jaw. Shadow fired a powerful Dark Blast through his chest, killing him.

The smaller shadow demons returned, this time in a bigger swarm. Shadow threw punches and kicks infused with Dark energy, killing a lot of them.

"Shadow." Came the voice of Rose from behind Shadow. The shadow demons and the environment faded away, leaving the interior of the Hall of Origins' training room. Shadow looked at her older sister, her stare emotionless.

"Shadow." Rose repeated, her expression turning to worry when she saw Shadow's. "What are you doing?"

"I'm training." Shadow said.

"You've been in here for three days." Rose said. "you need to get some rest."

"I have to get stronger." Shadow said. "I have to destroy him."

"Shadow." Rose said, knowing exactly why Shadow was pushing herself like this. "Your body's going to give out on you before you get any stronger."

"I'm fine." Shadow said, beginning to pant. Suddenly she collapsed forward, Rose catching her.

Had Rose not expected this, she'd have been alarmed. However, she actually wondered why it hadn't happened sooner.

"She's one tough kid." Rose said to herself. "She even resisted the Sleep Powder I set up when I entered. She certainly earned her title."

 _With Shadow—inside her mind_

"Why can't I wake up?" Shadow asked, trying to force herself awake, but failing.

" **It's because I won't let you.'** Came the voice of Dakurai, who appeared in front of Shadow.

"Let me out Dakurai." Shadow said calmly. "Please?"

" **Not until you hear what I have to say."** Dakurai said, her tone indicating worry. **"But, just in case you try anything…"**

Dakurai snapped her fingers, shadowy tendrils coming up from the ground and wrapping themselves around Shadow, binding her arms to her sides and holding her legs together. They pulled her down, forcing her to the ground on her knees. Shadow looked at Dakurai with confusion and slight worry.

" **Shadow…"** Dakurai said, kneeling down next to Shadow and putting her arms around her. **"Listen."**

"Alright." Shadow said, sighing. "I'm listening. What do you have to say?"

" **Shadow."** Dakurai said, a sort of big sister complex coming over her. **"You've got to take it easy. Your body's not gonna be able to handle much more of this. Your friends are worried about you. You need to sleep and talk to them. They want to help you. You need to listen to them. I know it hurts, but pushing your body until it gives out isn't the answer. You'll die if you keep that up."**

"How do you know that isn't my goal?" Shadow asked her doppelganger.

" **I can read your thoughts."** Dakurai said. **"You need to stop this insane training. Revenge isn't going to solve anything. Shadow, you're not this type of person. You need to go back to your original, cheery self. You don't need to do this. You don't need to get revenge."**

"I'm not doing this for revenge." Shadow said, her tone sad. "I'm doing this to prove myself."

" **To prove what?"** Dakurai asked.

"That I can be more than just me." Shadow said. "With Ace gone, I need to step up. I have to do the work for both of us."

" **Don't."** Dakurai said, holding Shadow tighter. **"All you're going to do is prove to yourself more and more that you can't. I know you can't. You're not Ace. You are Shadow Darkstar. He is gone, but that doesn't mean you have to let his death ruin your chance to live. If you do this, what would he think? Would he really want you to exhaust yourself to prove to yourself that you can do it?"**

"No." Shadow said. Dakurai snapped her fingers, removing the shadow tendrils.

" **Exactly."** The Shadow Spectre said, running her fingers through Shadow's hair.

Shadow hugged Dakurai, smiling.

"Thanks." She whispered. "I needed that."

" **Welcome."** Dakurai said, giggling. **"Now, let's do something."**

"I think I should wake up." Shadow said. "I've got to see everybody right away."

" **Not just yet."** Dakurai said. **"You exhausted your physical strength earlier. You're gonna need to rest up for a while before you can do much. Rose actually put you to sleep with Sleep Powder and I helped drag you in here."**

"So" Shadow asked, her original personality starting to come back. "When can I wake up?"

" **I'd give it about fifteen hours."** Dakurai said, shrugging. **"That should be enough.'**

"Okay.' Shadow said. "I'll wait."

" **Yay!"** Dakurai said, squeezing Shadow. **"Now we've got lots of time for fun."**

 _Fifteen hours later_

Shadow walked out of her room, looking more refreshed than before. Outside, several of the other legendaries were standing, waiting to see how she was faring.

"How are you, Shadow?" Bianca asked, taking Shadow's hand. "Did you sleep well?"

"Yeah." Shadow said. "I feel better now, thank you."

"That's good." Arcey said, hugging her pupil. "We were worried for you."

"I'm fine." Shadow said. "I just needed to let out my emotions."

"Well" Kortella said, smiling as she hugged Shadow. "Now that you're good now, can we go and visit Canalave like you promised?"

"Sure." Shadow said, rubbing Kortella's head. She never could stay very sad with Kortella's cheery personality.

As the two of them walked outside, Kortella took Shadow's hand. Shadow looked down at her, her eye glancing by her band that Rose had given her. She noticed that the symbol on the band had turned cobalt blue and had blood red inside of it.

 _In Canalave_

Shadow and Kortella sat down in the restaurant, ordering their food. They had a conversation while they waited.

"So" Kortella said. "I figured I'd tell you this stuff before you encountered Destronix. You know, if you do encounter him, that is."

"What?" Shadow asked, confused.

"Well" Kortella said, sighing. "I don't think you should hate him."

"What?" Shadow asked, the question confusing her.

"Destronix is confused." Kortella said. "I don't think he's thinking straight."

"What makes you say that?" Shadow asked.

"He and I are siblings.' Kortella said. "We were both built by Dr. Kronos and gained our sentience around the same time."

"That's right." Shadow said, remembering. "I forgot about that."

"Well" Kortella said. "Destronix was always trying to think of ways for us to escape Kronos' control. He almost succeeded several times, but he failed each time. Kronos would punish us heavily for our attempts."

"That's terrible." Shadow said, gasping.

"After the incident in Alamos Town" Kortella continued. "I thought Kronos would kill me for sure, but he didn't. Destronix helped me tough out the worst that mad scientist could throw at me."

"There's still the fact that Destronix killed Ace." Shadow said. "Ace didn't do anything to him."

"I" Kortella said, sighing. "I can't explain it. I don't know why Destronix did it, but I don't think he's all that bad."

"I'll see when I encounter him." Shadow said, sighing.

"Oh, I think that'll be sooner than you think." The voice came from behind Shadow. The Dark Empath turned just in time to see the fist slam her through the wall, causing it to crumble around her. Kortella turned to see Destronix standing in front of her, his golden uniform nearly flashing.

"Destronix!" Kortella shouted, standing up. "Why are you doing this?"

"Because, dear sister." Destronix said, taking a step towards where Shadow had landed. "I've got to remove any obstacles in my way of destroying this world."

"Why would you do that?!" Kortella shouted. "This world has so much beauty in it!"

"Because." Destronix said. "This world is full of imperfection. I am here to cleanse it."

"That's not right!" Kortella shouted. "Even though this world isn't perfect, you have no right to destroy it! What makes you the deciding factor in this matter?!"

"I am the most powerful being here." Destronix said. "That is what gives me the right to decide."

"Why did you kill Ace?!" Kortella shouted. "And why did you destroy Alamos Town?!"

"They were obstacles to my conquest." Destronix said. "Alamos Town was where the gates of space and time were located. With those destroyed, I can prevent those meddling Reality Pokémon from attacking me. Ace Hunter was a bonus. He is the most powerful being that could stop me. With him dead, I am free to do as I please."

"Not yet you're not!" Shadow shouted, leaping from the rubble she was buried under and threw a powerful punch at Destronix. The synthoid caught it, punching Shadow again. Shadow called Dark energy to her hands, firing a powerful Dark Blast at Destronix, who didn't even flinch when the blast hit him.

"You're going to have to do better than that." He said, laughing.

"Fine then." Shadow said. She closed her eyes and held her arms out by her sides. Her body flashed for a moment, changing shape.

Her skin turned completely black and her clothes fused with her body. They turned black as well, her pants becoming like a dress, long and flowing. Her legs became thinner, almost to the point of stilts even. Her five fingers fused into three, her forearms becoming a little bit bigger. Her red, rose petal necklace turned much darker and began to jut out from her chest, a smaller one jutting from her back. Her hair curved around to the front of her head, her green highlights being accentuated against the darker black hair. Her eyes turned a deeper shade of crimson, seeming to shine. Her aura skyrocketed, her nigh unbridled power surging forth.

"So" Destronix said, amused. "The true Dark Empath has emerged. Let's begin this."

Destronix rushed forward, throwing a punch into Shadow's face that sent her through the wall. She hit the ground hard, but stood back up anyway.

"I won't let you hurt anyone else." Shadow said, firing a powerful Psychic blast at Destronix, who was unfazed. The synthoid rushed at Shadow, the two of them trading powerful blows.

Shadow threw a punch into Destronix's face, stunning him long enough for her to throw a flurry of punches at his chest and face. Destronix recoiled from the force of them, but was otherwise unharmed.

"You're pretty good, Darkstar." Destronix said, chuckling. "There's a chance you're even more powerful than your boyfriend."

"His death will not go unjustified." Shadow said, Dark energy in her hands. She fired a powerful Dark Blast that razed Destronix.

After the blast faded, Destronix was panting. The blow had done decent damage to him.

"Funny." He said, looking down at his body. "Ace Hunter must have weakened me more than I thought. But, no matter. I'll defeat you here and there will be no more obstacles to my plan."

"That's gonna be harder than you thought." Shadow said, getting into a fighting stance.

"Really now?" Destronix said, chuckling. "You're going to stop me?"

"Yeah." Shadow said, growling a little as she rushed forward for a powerful punch to Destronix's face. Destronix flew backwards into a wall, falling to the ground. He looked up at Shadow, amusement in his face.

"You're very impressive." He said, chuckling. "I'm going to enjoy killing you."

Shadow and Destronix ran forward, trading blows, Light and Dark energy flying everywhere.

Finally, Shadow kicked Destronix in the chest, putting some space in between them.

"That's it!" Destronix shouted. "I'm done toying with you! This is where you die, Shadow Darkstar!"

Destronix held his hands out to his sides, Light energy being emitted from him. His armor began to heal itself, golden lines appearing on his face. His eyes flashed a more intense gold, his power skyrocketing further.

"This is my true power." He said, grinning evilly. "How do you like it?"

"I won't let you win!" Shadow shouted. "You must be stopped!"

Shadow ran forward, pulling back for a Dark Punch. Destronix caught the punch, laughing. He punched Shadow in the face hard enough to almost dislocate her shoulder. The Dark Empath fell on the ground, bouncing twice before stopping. Destronix fired powerful blasts at Shadow, each of them striking her, causing her to cry out in pain.

"Guys!" Kortella said, stepping in between the two of them. "Please don't do that! You'll destroy this town and kill everyone in it."

"Like I care." Destronix said, charging up a burst of Light energy. Shadow charged up a burst if Dark energy, growling.

"Please don't do this, Destronix.' Kortella plead, turning to the destructive synthoid. "You never were like this before. Remember me. Please. Don't do this."

Destronix looked at Kortella for a second, as if contemplating his decision. After about thirty seconds, he shot his blast of Light energy; right through Kortella's chest.

Kortella looked down at her exposed inner workings with an expression of horror on her face. Her expression then turned to sadness as she looked at Destronix, almost as if to say 'why, Destronix, why?'.

The synthoid girl fell forward, her eyes losing their glow. There seemed to be what looked like tears falling from them. Shadow simply stared in horror, unable to understand Destronix's actions.

"H-how?" Shadow said, dropping to her knees. "How could you do this? How could you kill the one person that still cared about you?!"

"She was standing in the way of my goal." Destronix said, shaking his head. "I can't have any obstacles preventing me from my goal."

"What goal?!" Shadow shouted at the synthoid. "You are only destroying others that don't wish to harm you! What could you possibly be trying to achieve by doing this?!"

"Perfection." Destronix said, smiling as he aimed a blast at Shadow. He fired the blast, aiming straight for Shadow's heart.

Shadow tensed herself for the blast, but a black, shadowy, humanlike shape smacked the blast away. Shadow looked at it for a second, confused as she stood up. The shape turned back to her, looking at her with large, red eyes.

" _ **Sorry I've been gone."**_ The shape said, apologizing. _**"I had to recover a lot of energy."**_

"A-Ace?" Shadow said, walking over to the shape, hugging him. "Is that you?"

" _ **Yeah."**_ The shape—Ace—said, nodding as he hugged her. _**"It's me."**_


	12. The Stone Part Three: Hidden Power

Chapter Eleven: The Stone Part Three: Hidden Power

"A-Ace?" Shadow said, walking over to the shape, hugging him. "Is that you?"

" _ **Yeah."**_ The shape—Ace—said, nodding as he hugged her. _**"It's me."**_

"I missed you so much.' Shadow said, crying.

" _ **I know.'**_ Ace said, squeezing his girlfriend close. _**"I couldn't help it. I was forced to reside inside of your bracelet's Stone to recover energy. I couldn't even establish a Psychic link because of it."**_

"I'm so glad you're safe.' Shadow said, sniffling.

" _ **Me too."**_ Ace said, chuckling. _**"Now, let's do this. We've got to stop Destronix."**_

"Right." Shadow said, nodding.

"Touching." Destronix said, Light energy in his hands. "But, I have goals to meet, so, you two are in the way."

"You're not going to get past us." Shadow said, clenching her fists. "This is where we stop you!"

Ace snapped his fingers, Kortella's unmoving body disappearing into the shadows.

"So" Destronix said, grinning. "You're going to go all out now?"

" _ **Y**_ e _ **a**_ h _ **.**_ " Ace and Shadow said, clenching their fists.

" _ **Shadow."**_ Ace said, looking at the Dark Empath. _**"I have an idea."**_

"What?" Shadow asked.

" _ **That bracelet Rose gave you."**_ Ace said, pointing at it. _**"Have you figured out what it's for?"**_

"No.' Shadow said, shaking her head.

" **I see something in it."** Dakurai said, her voice ringing clear as her astral image appeared before the two Kyuryoon. **"But, I'm not sure what."**

" _ **It's a Mega Stone."**_ Ace said, causing Shadow and Dakurai to look at it with shock (Shadow) and amazement (Dakurai).

"A Mega Stone?" Shadow asked. "Here?"

" **But"** Dakurai said, thinking. **"How would we activate it? We don't have a Key Stone."**

" _ **I'll handle that.'**_ Ace said, grabbing Shadow's wrist over where the Stone was. The Stone glowed for a second, signifying power.

" **I'll help too."** Dakurai said, grabbing the Stone with her Astral form.

The Stone glowed for a second, Ace and Dakurai then getting sucked into it. Once they were inside, the Stone's symbol turned red and black, flashing brightly.

"Ace?" Shadow asked, looking at the Stone, the thought of losing the two beings she'd come to relate with best fresh in her mind. "Dakurai?"

" **W** _ **e**_ **'** _ **r**_ **e** _ **i**_ **n** _ **s**_ **i** _ **d**_ **e** _ **t**_ **h** _ **e**_ **S** _ **t**_ **o** _ **n**_ **e** _ **.**_ **"** Ace and Dakurai said, their voices mixed. _**"**_ **D** _ **o**_ **n** _ **'**_ **t** _ **w**_ **o** _ **r**_ **r** _ **y**_ **w** _ **e**_ **'** _ **r**_ **e** _ **f**_ **i** _ **n**_ **e** _ **.**_ **"**

"Okay." Shadow said, breathing a sigh of relief. "So, what now?"

" **N** _ **o**_ **c** _ **l**_ **u** _ **e**_ **.** _ **"**_ They (Ace and Dakurai) said. Shadow couldn't see it, but she could feel that the two of them shrugged.

Shadow grabbed the Stone, curious. Instantly, a pink, crystalline shield formed around her, shielding her from view. She felt incredible power flowing into her, changing her.

Outside the shield, Destronix watched, confused as to why this was happening. He fired a blast of Light energy at the shield, but it bounced off. He began firing a barrage of Light energy blasts at the shield, hoping to break it, but he still couldn't.

"Well then.' He said, turning around and preparing to leave. "I guess I'll have to come back to them later."

" _Don't even think about leaving!"_ Shadow's voice came loud and clear from the shield. Destronix turned around to see that the shield was cracking, power spilling from the cracks as light burst from them.

The shield burst, Dark energy exploding from it. Standing in the center of where it had been, however, was Shadow. But, there was something very different about her.

Shadow's dress had become more like a wedding dress, but it was purely black, even darker than her original dress and sort of like a flame. Her elbow length gloves turned a darker color of black as well, Dark fire surrounding her fists. Around her left wrist was the band, the stone glowing brilliantly. Her exposed skin, which was now exposed as how a sleeveless wedding dress would expose it, turned a pale white, a stark contrast to the dress. Her hair, which had also turned Darker, now had dark red streaks mixed in with the green. It was longer and reached halfway down her back, almost like a fire. Her horn in the middle of her chest split into two, sheer Dark power emitting from the point where they split. Her shoulders were spitting off shadowy fires, sort of like Ace's Nightmare Pokéforme. A red flame burned around her neck, distorting in her energy shift. She was bent over slightly, her fists clenched as she shook with the power coming from her. A pure black aura came off of her, reaching almost fifteen feet and acting as a fire. The entire area seemed to become a little darker as her aura permeated it. Her body trembled, having power, but seeming to be unable to control it.

She looked up at Destronix, her eyes purely red with black flames emerging from them as she growled, rushing forward with a powerful Dark Punch. Her punch nailed Destronix in the face, sending him flying backwards into a building. The synthoid's expression was pure surprise as he realized he didn't even see the punch.

" _You're going to pay for all the people you've hurt, Destronix!"_ Shadow shouted, pure Dark fires spewing upwards from her hands as she rushed forward to throw three more into Destronix's stomach, causing him to cough out blood.

Destronix used a pulse of Light energy to force Shadow backwards, punching her away from him.

"What are you?!" The injured synthoid said, a little nervous for the first time in a long time.

" _I am Shadow Darkevoir."_ Shadow said, growling. _"And I am here to stop you."_

"Well then" Destronix said, releasing all of his seals. "Allow me to oblige you."

Destronix's hair began waving like in a windstorm and his aura and power level skyrocketed. His golden eyes turned blue, reflecting power. The armor he wore turned white, emitting pure Light energy. The power he was emitting seemed to brighten up the area, sort of canceling out Shadow's Dark aura's darkening effect.

"So" Destronix said, clenching his fist, Light energy flowing powerfully from it. "Can you beat me? Let's see."

Shadow and Destronix charged at each other, pulling back powerful punches with their respective elements.

* * *

So, Shadow used the Stone to transform into a Mega(?) evolution. Can it beat Destronix? And, what was that name drop she said? Find out soon.


	13. The Stone Part Four: Together Once Again

Chapter Twelve: The Stone Part Four: Together Once Again

Destronix and Shadow's fists collided, an explosion erupting from the point of collision. The buildings all around them shook, windows shattering and the entire city shook from the power emitted in the blow.

Shadow and Destronix pulsed their respective energies through their fist, the force of it pushing both of them back hard. They were thrown backwards, hitting the ground.

The two of them stood back up, rushing towards each other and trading blows. Each blow caused a miniature earthquake, shaking Canalave further. Neither fighter showed any signs of weakness or injury.

"Give up, Shadow." Destronix said, grinning as he fired a blast of Light energy in Shadow's face. Shadow was knocked to the ground, Destronix leaping over her.

Shadow kicked Destronix in the chest as he was moving toward her. The force of the kick knocked him backwards, allowing Shadow to stand up.

" _Never."_ Shadow said, her voice in a growl. _"You will not win this fight. I will not let you."_

"I don't think you have a choice." Destronix said.

Shadow shot a blast of Dark energy at the synthoid, rushing forward as the blast hit him and punching him so hard that she punched right through his chest.

Destronix's expression was one of shock. He looked at the place where Shadow had punched him, realizing that the Dark Empath had caused a powerful injury.

Shadow ripped her arm out, pulling out some of Destronix's inner wiring. The synthoid dropped to his knees, panting.

"How" he said, disbelief evident on his face. "How did you do that? I was at my most powerful. You should not have been able to defeat me so easily."

" _You're dealing with the two most powerful legendaries on the Council."_ Shadow said, punching Destronix in the face. _"Did you really think that you would defeat our combined power?"_

"You're not going to beat me so easily." Destronix said, standing up as a blood like substance dripped out of his wound. "I am the most powerful synthoid created by Kronos specifically to destroy you. I will not give up that goal so easily."

" _Burn in hell."_ Shadow said, seemingly out of character as she charged up a powerful Dark Blast and fired it at Destronix. Just before the powerful blast struck the injured synthoid, however, Destronix summoned some of his remaining power and used it to open a portal, allowing him to teleport from that location.

Shadow looked at the place where Destronix was, her teeth clenched. She collapsed to her knees, returning to her human forme and placing her palms on the ground as the essence of Ace shot out of her Mega Stone, lying on the ground next to her. The two of them looked at each other, Shadow leaning over onto Ace and lying down on top of him.

Ace wrapped his arms around her, Shadow drawing her arms to her chest as the two of them looked into each other's eyes.

"I missed you." Shadow said quietly, a tear falling from her eye.

"I know." Ace said, his tone apologetic. "I missed you too. I'm sorry I was gone."

"It's okay." Shadow said, smiling. "You're here now."

"Right." Ace said, stroking Shadow's face and wiping the tears from her eyes. "I am. And I'm not leaving again. I'll be here, right next to you."

"I know." Shadow said, resting her head on Ace's chest. "I've always known that, for as long as I've known you. Every time I needed a shoulder to cry on, I always had you there by my side, there to dry my tears, there to hold me."

"And you've always been there for me." Ace said, rubbing Shadow's hair and back. "You've always been the one thing that keeps me sane, keeps me human. You are my limit, my control."

"Ace.' Shadow said, smiling as she leaned forward and kissed Ace.

"Shadow.' Ace said as he leaned into the kiss.

"You always know how to show your emotions." Shadow said, putting her head back on Ace's chest.

"Do you wanna do this forever?" Ace asked.

"Yeah." Shadow said, nodding her head.

"Well then" Ace said, smiling as he held his girlfriend close. "Shadow Darkstar, will you marry me?"

"Wh-what?" Shadow asked, surprised.

"Will you ma—" Ace said, but he was cut off by Shadow's lips meeting his in a kiss more passionate than the last one.

"Yes." She said, smiling. Ace also smiled, pulling Shadow close to him and kissing her forehead.

"Well then.' Ace said, grinning. "I'll grab a ring later. I was actually going to get one when Destronix attacked, but I couldn't because I went to go fight Destronix."

"It's okay." Shadow said, snuggling into Ace's arms. "I still say yes."

"Good.' Ace said. "I'm glad."

"We should go home.' Shadow said. "I'm sure everyone wants to see you again."

"Yeah." Ace said. "I kinda did die for ten days or so."

"Yeah.' Shadow said, nodding.

Ace snapped his fingers, kissing Shadow on the lips as the shadows swallowed them, taking them back to the Hall of Origins.

 _At the Hall_

The legendaries were waiting around the table, waiting for word on Mewtwo's repairs on Kortella. The psycat had been in the lab for a while and hadn't given a report on the progress. They were patiently waiting, but all of them were anxious to hear the reports of the synthoid girl's health.

Suddenly, from the ceiling, a portal of shadows appeared, Ace and Shadow falling through it, Shadow on top of Ace. The Kyuryoon crashed onto the table, breaking it.

"Well" Ace said, chuckling. "I guess I should have thought that one out more."

"Ace?!" Eon and Rose exclaimed, them and the rest of the legendaries standing up and seeing if the Nightmare Demon was actually there.

"Yeah." Ace said, nodding. "It's me."

"What happened to you?" Eon asked as Ace and Shadow stood up.

"Had to recover." Ace said, shrugging. "Now, if you'll excuse us, me and my fiancée need to get some rest from the fight we were in."

"Okay." Arcey said, waving as they went to Ace's room. As they left, the other legendaries went back to worrying about Kortella.

"Wait a minute!" Eon exclaimed a few minutes later. "Did he say 'fiancée'?!"

"Yeah.' Rose said, thinking. "I think he did."

"Oh my Arceo, he finally asked her." Eon said. "I'm so proud of him for manning up."

"Weren't you trying to pressure N to ask you out when you first started dating?" Arcey asked, her knowing gaze looking at the Eon Goddess.

"Maybe." Eon said, grinning. "But, I got him to do it, didn't I?"

"True." Arcey said, shrugging. "But, it seems they're heading to a big step in life. I hope there's no problems down the road."

"Funny how they're going to get married before you guys." Eon said. "Even though you have a twenty year old child you gave birth to."

"Can it, Eon.' Arcey said, smacking her daughter across the back of her head.

"Well, I'm happy for them.' Mina said, her cheery voice piping up.

"Yeah.' The legendaries said, nodding as they wished their friends luck.

* * *

oh my god, he proposed! So romantic! I hope it goes well. What adventures will happen to them now? And, will Destronix return? Find out soon.


	14. Switch Part One: The First

Chapter Thirteen: Switch

"Hey, Mina" Eon asked the pink clad girl, who was walking by. "What are you doing?"

"I learned a new move from Arcey's books." Mina said cheerily. "And, I wanna show it to Ace and Shadow."

"Wait" Eon said, remembering the last time the psycat girl had gotten her hands on one of her mother's books (see: Azure Light ch.8). "What does this move do?"

"Well" Mina said as she explained the technique.

"Woah." Eon said as she heard the technique. "That sounds like it'll be funny. Have at it."

"Okay.' Mina said, heading into Ace's room where the two of them slept.

Mina charged up a red, heart shaped ball of energy in her hands, cupping them. She released the energy, the energy flowing over Ace and Shadow.

"This'll be fun!" she said, giggling as she left the room.

 _Later_

Shadow woke up, yawning. She stretched her limbs, releasing some tension.

"Man, I'm hungry." She said, popping her back. "That synthoid took a lot out of me. I'm gonna have to eat a fridge just to get back to optimal levels. Which reminds me: me and Eon need to have another eating contest."

Shadow got out of bed, taking a step forward. She stumbled a little bit, catching herself.

"That's weird." She said, standing and regaining her balance. "I seem to be top heavy. That battle must have taken a lot out of me."

Shadow left the room, yawning.

Shortly after, Ace woke up, yawning himself.

"Woah." He said, rubbing his head. "I feel heavy, like I gained forty pounds overnight. I think I should eat something, regain my strength."

Ace left the room, heading to the breakfast table. Dialga and Palkia, who were sitting down, drinking soda, noticed Ace.

"So" Dialga asked, a certain tone in her voice. "Did you two only sleep last night?"

"What makes you ask that?" Ace asked.

"Well" Dialga said, shrugging, a sly smile on her face. "you two, in a room alone. Makes the mind wonder what you're doing."

"we were sleeping." Ace said. "That fight seriously took a lot out of us."

"Well" Dialga said, nudging Ace's arm with her elbow. "You're a guy, with an attractive girl right next to you. You seriously didn't consider something."

"But" Ace said, confused. "I am a girl."

Dialga and Palkia looked at Ace with confusion.

"Wh-what?" Dialga asked. "I don't get it.'

"I'm a girl." Ace(?) said, causing them to look at him with even more confused expressions. "I've always been a girl."

"Ace" Dialga said. "You get enough sleep last night?"

"What do you mean Ace?" Ace(?) asked, confused. "I'm Shadow."

"What?" Palkia asked.

"Dialga" Shadow(?) said, coming into the room. "If I hear one more Arceodamned thing about me and Shadow doing anything other than sharing a bed for the night I'm going to kick your as—"

At this point, Ace(?) and Shadow(?) noticed each other. Their expressions turned to confused as Ace(?) stood up and walked over to Shadow(?). They put their hands on each other's faces, feeling them. They then felt each other's arms, realizing the truth.

"We switched bodies!" they shouted.

"Well" Ace in Shadow's body said, thinking. "That would explain me being top heavy. I'm not used to a female's body."

"And that explains why I felt heavier." Shadow in Ace's body said, thinking.

"So" Dialga said, realizing what was going on. "You switched bodies?"

"Yeah" Ace said, shrugging Shadow's shoulders. "No idea how, but we've apparently switched bodies."

"Ha!" Dialga laughed. "That's hilarious."

"It won't be so hilarious" Ace said, holding up Shadow's hand, Dark energy in it. "When I kick your asses."

"Ha!" Dialga taunted. "You don't know how to use Shadow's moves! You can't beat us!"

"Uh, Dialga.' Palkia said, grabbing his girlfriend's arm and whispering in her ear. "Actually, he does. They both know the same moves and use them the same way."

"Oh sh!t." Dialga said, realizing the fact. "You're right."

"So" Ace said, an amused look on Shadow's face. "Are you going to laugh?"

"On the inside." Dialga said, a blast of Dark energy striking her in the chest, knocking her backwards.

"Worth it!" The Time Goddess said, pumping a fist in the air.

Ace rolled Shadow's eyes as Mina came into the room, looking at the two Kyuryoon.

"Did it work?" she asked.

"So it was you." Ace said, turning Shadow's body towards Mina.

"Yep." Mina said, grinning. "Did you like it?"

"Lemme answer that." Ace said, picking Mina up by the back of her shirt.

"I'll take this as a yes.' Mina said, grinning.

Ace had Shadow's body take Mina over to the window over the pool. Ace then pushed the pink psycat out of the window, letting her hit the water with a splash.

"There we go." Ace said, smacking his palms together. "There's that taken care of."

"She gonna be okay?" Palkia asked.

"She's withstood worse." Ace said. "She'll be fine."

"Good." Dialga said. "Do NOT need to explain that one to Arcey."

"Yeah.' Palkia said.

"Well" Ace said, shrugging Shadow's shoulders. "She switched our bodies. I paid her back."

"I noticed." Dialga said. "So, do you know how to reverse it?"

"Well" Ace said as he and Shadow glowed for about three seconds, dropping to their knees. They stood up, looking at each other.

"Hey" They both said. "We're back!"

"Well" Dialga said, looking at them as well. "It seems it was temporary."

"Yeah.' Ace said. "That's good. I was thinking I'd be stuck in Shadow's body for a while."

"Oh, but Ace." Dialga said, draping her arms over Ace's shoulders. "Haven't you always wondered how she feels?"

"I always know how she feels.' Ace said. "We have a psychic link."

"Oh" Dialga said, smiling slyly. "But, I mean what she feels. I mean on the outside."

"And this conversation has turned to a weird place." Ace said, removing Dialga's hands from his shoulder. "Shadow, you and me gotta date to get to."

"Okay." Shadow said, taking Ace's hand as the Nightmare Demon led her outside, taking her to a special location.

* * *

So, that was fixed, but is it fixed for good? Who knows. But, you'll find out soon.


	15. The Next Date

Chapter Fourteen: The Next Date

Ace and Shadow walked into the restaurant, finding a seat. They looked at each other, smiling.

"This place is really nice." Shadow said, looking around.

"Yeah." Ace said, nodding. "Cressa recommended it. I'm surprised though."

"Why?" Shadow asked.

"She doesn't seem the type to go to fancy restaurants." Ace said. "Then again, we don't either."

"Yeah." Shadow said. "If you're uncomfortable, we can leave. We don't have to eat here."

"Well" Ace said. "I kinda wanna tell Cressa we at least made it through our meal first. She seemed so enthusiastic about it when she told me."

"Okay." Shadow said, nodding.

"Good evening." The waitress said, walking over to the two of them. "What can I help you with today?"

"Well" Ace said, not looking at the waitress. "We would like to—"

Ace looked up at the waitress, shocked.

The waitress was wearing a white, button down shirt with black pants. She had very blonde hair, save the front which was warm pink. Her eyes were pink with white pupils.

"Cressa?!" he said, gasping. "What are you doing here?!"

"I work here, silly." Cressa said, giggling. "That's why I wanted you to come here."

"Huh." Ace said. "Okay then."

"So" Cressa said, pulling out a notebook. "What are you having?"

"Steak, rare." Ace said, shrugging. "With shrimp, chicken and hush puppies."

"I'll take the same.' Shadow said. "But, I'd like my steak medium rare."

"Alright." Cressa said, nodding. "I'll be right back with drinks. What do you want to drink?"

"I'll take soda." Ace said.

"Me too." Shadow said.

"Alright.' Cressa said, nodding. "I'll be back with those."

"Great." Ace said. Cressa turned and walked into the kitchen.

"Well" Shadow said, smiling. "She does a good job."

"I'm surprised.' Ace said. "Considering it's Cressa. Remember when we first met her?"

"Yeah." Shadow said, laughing. "I sure got jealous of her.'

"Yeah.' Ace said, laughing. "She got handsier in ten seconds than you got in twenty years."

"Y-yeah." Shadow said. "But, it was weird."

"Yeah." Ace said. "It was weird when she just goes up to me, feeling my chest. But, she's hilarious to be around.'

"Yeah.' Shadow said, nodding as Cressa came back with their drinks. Ace and Shadow took their drinks, drinking them.

"Let me know if you guys need anything." Cressa said, smiling as she walked back into the kitchen.

"Will do." Ace said, leaning back in his chair.

"So" Shadow said, thinking. "What should we do after this?"

"We should head to the movies." Ace said. "Crobatman v Supermon: Dawn of Keldeo is out and I heard it's really good."

"Oh, I've been wanting to see that." Shadow said. "Eon's been waiting to see it too."

"You want to invite her?" Ace asked.

"Sure." Shadow said. "Let's do it. The Unholy Trinity, once again together."

"Alright." Ace said, pulling out his cell phone. He dialed Eon's number, waiting for the Eon Goddess to pick up the phone.

"Hello?" Eon said, answering.

"Hey, Eon." Ace said, leaning back in his chair.

"Hey, Ace." Eon said. "What's up?"

"Me and Shadow are heading to the movies after we eat." Ace said. "We're gonna see Crobatman v Superman: Dawn of Keldeo. Wanna come?"

"Sure.' Eon said. "When?"

"We'll hit the four thirty show." Ace said.

"Alright." Eon said, nodding. "I'll be there."

"Great." Ace said. "See ya then."

"Alright.' Eon said. "See ya."

Eon hung up her phone, Ace doing the same.

"Is she going?" Shadow asked.

"Yeah.' Ace said. "She is.

"Great." Shadow said. "Should we ask Cressa?"

"If you want." Ace said. "Though, she might be working then."

"Right.' Shadow said. "Might as well check."

"Yeah." Ace said.

"Hi guys." Cressa said, coming out with their food. "I'm back. Here's your food."

"Sweet." Ace said, licking his lips. "By the way, when do you get off?"

"About four." Cressa said. "Why?"

"Me, Shadow, and Eon are going to see Crobatman v Supermon: Dawn of Keldeo at four thirty." Ace said. "Wondered if you wanted to go."

"I'd love to." Cressa said, nodding. "I'll call you when I'm ready. Is it okay if I bring Diana?"

"Yeah, sure." Ace said. "The more the merrier."

"Great." Cressa said, smiling. "I'll meet you guys at the theater with Diana."

"Cool." Ace said. "If you don't see us, just go in. We'll save you two seats if we go in."

"Okay." Cressa said, nodding. She left to attend to her duties, leaving Ace and Shadow to themselves.

 _Later_

"That was good." Ace said, licking his lips after he'd finished his meal.

"Very." Shadow said, smiling. "Now, we should get going. We need to get to the theater."

"Right." Ace said, nodding. The two of them got up and left, moving through the shadows to make it to the theater much faster.

They arrived there, seeing Eon waiting for them.

"You guys made it." Eon said, grinning. "Ready to see Supermon get his ass handed to him?"

"Oh yeah!" Ace said, fist bumping his best friend.

"I would think Supermon would win." Shadow said. "Since he's got less of a rule on doing what's necessary."

"Actually" Ace said, thinking. "I heard this is a much grittier Crobatman, definitely one who could match Supermon."

"Yeah" Shadow said, thinking. "I suppose you're right."

"Well" Ace said. "Judging from that, it's still anyone's battle. But, I'm rooting for Crobatman."

'Oh yeah.' Eon said, nodding. "It's gonna be good. Let's see it!"

"WE're here, guys!" Cressa shouted, running towards them, Diana in tow.

"Great." Ace said. "Let's go."

They all walked into the theater, going to the correct viewing room.

 _In an unknown location_

" **You've failed, Destronix."** The voice said, looking at the synthoid, its owner cloaked in the shadows.

"My apologies, Lord Volcanion." Destronix said, kneeling before the powerful demon.

" **Save your apologies."** Volcanion said, his tone angry. **"You have tested my patience. I thought you would actually be a match for the beings that killed Zygarde, my brother. But, it would seem I was wrong."**

"Understood." Destronix said, bowing his head. "What are you going to do?"

" **Remove an irritation from my midst."** Volcanion said, a strange blast coming out of his hand and enveloping Destronix. The synthoid disintegrated, screaming in pain as he felt himself boiling alive.

" **Now"** Volcanion said, thinking. **"I'll prepare to handle those two Kyuryoon myself."**

* * *

Oh shit! It seems we have a new villain on the scene: Volcanion. Funny, i think i've made every legendary appear at one point now in the Azure Light fics, with the exception of Megearna (though, this fic aint done yet). I wonder how this'll go for Ace and Shadow. Well, we'll find out soon.

So, the Switch arc is stopped temporarily (it's not done, but i've decided to split it up for fun).


	16. Jitters

Chapter Fifteen: Jitters

"Hey, Arcey!" Mina shouted, running into the room, holding a book. "What's this?"

"What's what?" Arcey said, her back to the pink clad girl.

"This book." Mina said, holding up said book. Arcey turned around and gasped.

The book looked old and dusty, as if it was ancient. It was red with gold binding and the title "Volcano Demon" was written on the front.

"Wh-where'd you get that book?" Arcey asked, staring at it.

"I found it in your room." Mina said. "What is it?"

"Mina" Arcey said, sighing. "What have I told you about getting things from my room?"

"Uh" Mina said, thinking. "Always put 'em back?"

"No." Arcey said, sighing. "I said don't do it all."

"Oh!" Mina said. "Okay then. So, what's the book about?"

"About an ancient foe." Arcey said. "Sealed in darkness similar to Zygarde. He was known only as the demon Volcanion, the Demon of the Power of Flare and Water. He's said to be powerful enough to combine the elements of Fire and Water."

"Woah!" Mina said, amazed. "HE sounds powerful."

"He is." Arcey said, nodding. "He's even more powerful than Zygarde."

"What!?" Mina exclaimed. "But, Zygarde was really really strong!"

"I know." Arcey said. "But, he was sealed away similar to Zygarde. I'm not sure of his location, but he's definitely sealed somewhere beneath the earth."

"Oh" Mina said. "So he's scary."

"Yeah.' Arcey said. "Now, go put this back."

"Alright.' Mina said, nodding. "I'll be back in a minute."

"Okay.' Arcey said as the pink clad psygirl left, the book in hand.

"That girl." Arcey said, chuckling as she was out of sight. "Mew, you sure know how to have 'em."

 _Shadow's POV (A/N: funny how all of the FPV segments for this have been Shadow)_

I woke up, yawning. Looking up, I jolted back a bit from the person (or should I say spectral image) in front of me.

" **Yay!"** Dakurai's cheery voice said as she grinned. **"You're up! It's boring sitting here watching you sleep."**

"Well" I said, reminding her. "You could have stayed inside my mind."

" **Oh yeah."** Dakurai said, giggling as she remembered (she sure acts like a child). **"I forgot."**

"So it would seem." I said, chuckling myself at the fact. "So, what should we do?"

" **Go make out with your fiancée."** Dakurai said, grinning.

I blushed a little. Calling Ace my boyfriend was strange enough when we first started dating. But, knowing I'd be marrying him soon (two weeks to be exact) was stranger still. I was definitely shocked when he proposed to me. Leave it to Ace to propose in the middle of a battlefield just after we'd beaten off a foe that had nearly destroyed the city of Canalave.

I decided to get out of bed, stretching and popping my back. I grabbed my jacket, necklace and locket and heading out the door. I saw Palkia and Dialga at the table when I arrived there. They turned to me and waved.

"Hey, Shadow." Palkia said, going back to his eating.

"Morning, Shadow." Dialga said.

"Morning guys." I said, sitting down next to them. You know, I'm still kind of surprised that they're not teasing me and Ace about being engaged. Oh well, I guess I won't complain about it, especially since Ace or Eon'd probably beat them up if they did.

"So" Dialga said, sipping some coffee. "How's it feel?"

"How's what feel?" I asked, confused.

"Getting married in two weeks." Dialga said, looking at me.

"I" I said, thinking. "I don't know."

To be completely honest, I hadn't truly thought about it. Thinking about it now, I realized what I would be taking on. I'd be married to Ace (not that marriage or Ace scared me) in two weeks. I realized just how nervous I was becoming. From our emotional link, I could tell Ace was feeling something similar, but even still. Those jitters I've heard happen started to come. I could feel my heart racing and hear my breathing quicken. I could see my vision start to go fuzzy for a second before I felt myself black out.

I woke up in my mind, seeing the faces of Dakurai and Ace staring down at me.

"You okay?" Ace asked. "You seemed really panicky back there."

"I" I said, sitting up. "I'm fine."

"Good.' Ace said, smiling. "I could tell you were a little nervous. Wedding jitters?"

"Y-yeah.' I said, nodding. "It was. I thought I'd be more ready for this."

"You think I'm ready either?" Ace said, laughing. "I'm not really ready, but I'm willing to take the chance with you."

"Oh, Ace." I said, feeling the blush creeping into my face. "That's so sweet. Thank you."

"Welcome.' Ace said, grinning.

" **Yay!"** Dakurai cheered us, pumping her fists in the air as she jumped.

"So" Ace asked me, extending his hand towards me. "Wanna get something to eat?"

"Sure." I said, smiling. "Let's do it."

"Great." Ace said, grinning. Well, first you gotta wake up."

"What about you?" I asked.

"I entered here after you blacked out." Ace said. "I'm gonna wake up too."

"Okay." I said. "I'll see you then."

"Good." Ace said, disappearing.

" **I'll see you later too.'** Dakurai said, grinning.

"Okay." I said as I felt myself disappearing.

 _Outside Shadow's mind—normal POV_

Shadow blinked her eyes to see Dialga and Palkia looking down at her. They looked a little worried, looking down at her.

"Are you okay?" Dialga and Palkia asked.

"Y-yeah." Shadow said, sitting and standing up. "I'm fine. I just had a conversation with Dakurai."

"Ah.' They said. "Well, what was it about? Are you nervous about the event?"

"Y-yeah." Shadow said, nodding. "But, wouldn't you be?"

"Oh hell yeah.' Dialga said, nodding. "But, we're not."

"True.' Shadow said. "But, I wonder how Ace is hiding his nervousness."

"Well" Dialga said. "He did hide his anger when he needed to ad managed to control his immense nightmare powers. I'm pretty sure he can hide a little bit of wedding prep jitters."

"I guess you're right.' Shadow said. "But, still…I'm getting married. It's gonna be wonderful."

 _In an unknown location_

" **So"** Volcanion said, thinking. **'The Kyuryoon are almost wed. This will present a problem. If the Four are born, then I may have to unleash Megearna. I'd hoped to not have to do that. But, with Team Lunar Fire coming, I'd better take no chances."**

* * *

So, Shadow's nervous. Oh boy, i wonder how that's gonna go. And, did i just tie in Team Lunar Fire with this again? Nice! YEah, if i didn't say it before, this takes place in between that fic and Azure Light. And, yes, i'm gonna start working on that soon.


	17. The Big Day

Chapter Sixteen: The Big Day

 _With Shadow, Eon, Arcey, Melody, and Bianca—two weeks before—Leavanny's Dress Shoppe_

"So" Shadow asked. "Is the dress ready?"

"Oh yeah.' Arcey said. "Leavanny is the fastest and best seamstress I know. She's the one that taught me how to sew and all that stuff."

"Oh?" Shadow asked, amazed. "That's cool."

"So, it's ready?" Arcey asked as Leavanny came out of the back room. She wore a dress that was long and flowing, but looked as if it was made of green and yellow leaves. Her hair was green and flowed down her back. Her eyes were green and lively.

"Yes.' Leavanny said, her voice soft like the rustling of leaves. "I'll go get it."

Leavanny retreated back into the back, returning later with Shadow's dress.

"It's beautiful." Shadow gasped. "Thank you, Leavanny."

"You're welcome." Leavanny said. "Arceus told me exactly what you wanted on it and I did that."

"Well, it's beautiful." Shadow said. "I love it."

"Well" Leavanny said as they walked out of the Shoppe. "Good luck with the wedding."

 _With Giratina—day of_

"Ace" Giratina said, walking into Ace's room. "Are you—"

The Death God stopped, shocked as he saw Ace sitting on his bed, clutching the blankets in both hands, staring at the floor. His eyes were constricted, vibrating like crazy as his teeth were clenched.

"Nervous?" Giratina asked, already knowing the answer.

"Ya think?" Ace said, chuckling.

"I'm actually surprised though." Giratina said. "It's not like it's gonna be any different than before. Well, other than your title."

"Yeah." Ace said. "But, I don't know if I'm completely ready for this."

"Who said you had to be completely ready?" Giratina said. "Though it's funny how the warrior that took down Zygarde is afraid of the words 'I do'."

"I don't know." Ace said. "It's just that I'm not completely sure."

"Look." Giratina said. "Just focus on her and you'll be fine."

"Right." Ace said.

"Oh, and one other thing." Giratina said. "Are you going casual?"

"Yeah." Ace said. "It's a casual wedding after all."

"Well, yeah." Giratina said. "But, I'm pretty sure Shadow's gonna be dressed fancy, so you better grab a few tissues."

"Why would I need those?" Ace asked.

"Remember what happened on prom night?" Giratina asked, chuckling.

"Oh yeah." Ace said, laughing. "I got a nosebleed."

"Yeah.' Giratina said. "So, you might wanna grab a few. I saw the dress they picked out and it's amazing."

"Huh." Ace said. "Well, I'll see it when I get there."

 _With Shadow_

"Come on, Shadow." Arcey said, knocking at the door. "It's time for you to go."

"I know." Shadow said, shuddering. "I'm just…"

"Nervous?" Arcey asked. "I get you. I'd be nervous too. But, Ace is just as nervous as you are. So, it's time for you to go."

"O-okay.' Shadow said, nodding as he walked out into the hallway. Arcey was standing there, smiling.

"You look beautiful." Arcey said. "Now, come on. I gotta give you away and then preach this thing."

"Are you even ordained?" Shadow asked.

"I am god." Arcey said. "I'm the one people are ordained by."

"Isn't that your great grandfather?" Shadow asked.

"Well, yeah." Arcey said. "but, he's dead, so I'm the one that counts now."

"Fair enough.' Shadow said, shrugging. "So, let's go then."

"Right." Arcey said, locking her arms with Shadow. The two of them walked down the hallway, heading for the main gathering hall of the Hall of Origins.

"Isn't a father supposed to give away the daughter?" Shadow asked.

"Yeah." Arcey said, shrugging. "But, we're not a normally cultured 'family', so I'm gonna do it. Plus, Giratina's the best man and is helping Ace get over his jitters."

"Oh." Shadow said, understanding. "Well, let's enter."

Arcey pushed open the doors, Shadow taking in the sights. Not surprisingly, she saw the guys standing were dressed casually, while the girls standing were dressed formally. On the groomsmen side Giratina, Chopper, N, Ray, May (to fill the spot), Sapphire (also to fill the spot) Palkia, and Mewtwo stood, all in casual dress. On the bridesmaid side, Eon, Melody, Dialga, Kortella (who had been repaired earlier), Bianca, Mira, Rose, and Darkora all stood, dressed semi-formally. Ace stood at the front, also dressed casually, and smiling.

Maura was in front of them, dressed in a cute blue dress as she threw rose petals into the aisles (And over everybody's heads). Mina assisted some, but she then got distracted by a chocolate bar Giratina tossed her to keep her from being hungry.

Arcey walked Shadow down the aisle, Ace hurriedly sticking a tissue into his nostrils as they began to drip red drops of blood. His eyes were on Shadow and her dress.

Shadow's dress was a long, flowing white gown that went almost to the floor. It opened up slightly to give her moving room. The top of the dress was like a blouse, being green with long sleeves. The 'blouse' portion had a low cut U shape that went down to her stomach. In the midst of the U, Shadow's white, lace shirt could be seen, accenting the green. Shadow wore green gloves that went up to her elbows (but were under the sleeves of the 'blouse'). She held a bouquet of Gracidea flowers that Shay had picked herself, along with Victory. Her hair was let down, the black and green color scheme accenting her dress. Her red eyes lit up with the smile on her face.

Arcey walked Shadow up to Ace, walking to the podium that stood at the back of the room. Everyone stopped their conversation, looking up at the God Pokémon.

"Alright." Arcey said, clearing her throat. "I'm not gonna give you the whole 'dearly beloved' thing so, let's get to it. We're here to marry these two here. So, Ace and Shadow, let's do this thing."

"Are you sure she is qualified to do this?" May leaned over to Hoopa and whispered.

"She's god.' Hoopa whispered back. "It's not about qualifications, it's title. Plus, they're her children. She definitely wants that honor."

"So" Arcey said. "Ace, do you take Shadow to be your wife, in sickness, health, life, death, and beyond, in a marriage honored by god and mortal, legendary and non-legendary?"

"Yes." Ace said, smiling. "I do."

"Shadow." Arcey said, turning to Shadow. "Do you take Ace to be your husband, in sickness, health, life, death, and beyond, in a marriage honored by god and mortal, legendary and non-legendary?"

"Yes." Shadow said, smiling as well. "I do."

"Then I declare you by my divine power" Arcey said, smiling. "Husband and wife! You may now make out like there's no tomorrow."

Shadow lunged at Ace, wrapping her arms around him as she closed the gap between their lips. The two of them embraced and kissed for a bit, everyone in the room cheering.

"Now" Arcey said once they had broken the kiss. "The reception's in the dining room. Let's go."

Everyone filed out, Ace and Shadow following behind.

 _At the reception_

The guests (though, most of them lived at the Hall already) all sat down to eat and they began to converse.

"So, Ace" Dialga leaned over. "You ready for tonight?"

"What's tonight?" Ace asked.

"You're taking a trip." Palkia said, leaning in. "A trip to Ploughtown."

Ace and Shadow both turned red, Eon snickering.

"Isn't that what you said you wanted to take me earlier?" N (A/N: for those of you that don't know or remember, N is Eon's boyfriend) leaned over to her, whispering. Eon turned red as well, nudging him.

"That was supposed to be our little secret." Eon said, grinning.

"No one else heard." N said, shrugging.

"I'm gonna rock your world." Eon said.

"Let's worry about that later." N said, chuckling.

 _Later (A/N: the irony of this combined w/ the last sentence XD)—With Ace and Shadow_

Ace and Shadow lay down on the guest bed in the Hall (they'd decided to not take a honeymoon since both places where they'd go were destroyed by Destronix), the room that was way away from everyone else.

"So" Shadow said. "WE're married."

"Yeah." Ace said. The two of them kissed each other once again. They hugged each other, enjoying their first night as a married couple, getting into the passion of the moment.

* * *

So, they're finally a married couple. Yay! Now we need the kids. This story is slowly becoming the gap bridger between the first Azure Light and Team Lunar Fire (which i'm perfectly fine with-that also means that the Volcanion fight might not happen in this story, which i'm also perfectly fine with-Volcanion **did** say something about Team Lunar Fire). Wonder what it means. Find out soon (i think).


	18. The Big News

Chapter Seventeen: The Big News

Ace woke up to a sound he always hated to hear: the sound of vomiting. He got up, walking to the bathroom near his room and knocked on the door.

"Anyone in there?" he said.

"Yeah.' Came the voices of Shadow and Eon, both of them sounding like they were sick to their stomachs.

"You're both sick?" Ace asked. "What'd you eat last night?"

"The same thing you ate." Eon said, vomiting again.

"huh.' Ace said, thinking. "Hold on, I'll get you some medicine."

"Good." Eon said. "Get the strong stuff."

"Right." Ace said, nodding. He walked into the kitchen where Arcey was sitting and drinking her coffee.

"Morning, Ace.' Arcey said, nodding towards the Dark Type.

"Morning Arcey." Ace said. "Where's the medicine?"

"In the cabinet." Arcey said. "What do you need?"

"Nausea medicine." Ace said. "The strong stuff."

"You sick?" Arcey asked, slightly concerned.

"No.' Ace said, shaking his head. "Shadow and Eon are."

"Really?" Arcey asked. "That's weird. Did they eat anything bad at the reception last night?"

"No." Ace said. "They ate the same stuff I did."

"Really now?" Arcey said, thinking. "Well, grab the medium stuff. And the box next to it."

"okay.' Ace said. He grabbed the stuff and walked back to Shadow and Eon, giving it to them through the door.

"Thanks.' Eon said. "Wait, is this…?"

"Not sure." Ace said. "I didn't look in the box."

Ace walked back to Arcey, sitting down. Arcey looked at him, thinking.

"What was in the box?" Ace asked.

"Oh" Arcey said, looking away from Ace with a smile. "Just something for non-food based nausea."

"What does that me—" Ace began to ask before he was interrupted by a yell.

"OH SH!T, WE'RE POSITIVE!" came a yell from Eon.

"Positive?" Ace asked, looking at Arcey. Arcey's expression was one of pride and joy.

"Ace." She said, putting her arm on Ace's arm. "You're going to be a father."

 _With Darkora and Rose_

"Well, that was an experience." Rose said, sitting across from the Darkrai woman. "That wedding sure was unlike any I've ever been to."

"Yeah." Darkora said. "Wait, when did you come into my room?"

"I" Rose said, thinking. "I don't remember."

"Did we have any alcohol yesterday?" Darkora asked.

"No.' Rose said. "Ace and Shadow specified that there was to be no alcohol at the wedding. They wanted to avoid having Arcey get drunk again."

"Then why can't I remember anything from last night?" Darkora asked. "And, why do I have a headache?"

"Maybe Palkia gave us something." Rose said. "Wait…I'm in your room…and we were both drunk or something…did we?"

"Oh Arceo.' Darkora said, her eyes widening. "I hope we didn't."

"Well" Rose said, thinking. "I think we'd know if we—"

Rose was interrupted by a loud shout that said 'OH SH!T, WE'RE POSITIVE!'.

"What was that?" Darkora asked.

"I have no idea.' Rose said. "But, it sounded like Eon."

"What did she mean by 'positive'?" Darkora asked.

"I don't know." Rose said. "But, there're—wait."

"What?" Darkora asked.

"Do you think" Rose asked. "She means that she's pregnant?"

 _With Ace and Arcey_

"A-a father?" Ace asked, shocked.

"Yes.' Arcey said, nodding. "You, Ace Hunter, are going to be a father soon. How does that make you feel?"

"I-it—" Ace said, beginning to sweat a little. "A-a father?"

"Yes, Ace." Arcey said, smiling. "You are going to be the father of at least one very happy child."

"And" Ace said, thinking. "You're gonna be a grandmother of Eon's child.'

"Wait a minute." Arcey said, thinking. "Who would be the father of Eon's child?"

"N." Ace said. "HE's her boyfriend."

"N?" Arcey asked. "Oh yes, the green haired one. He seems nice."

"And, he's your son in law." Ace said.

"Not until they get married." Arcey said, pointing at Ace.

"Better start treating him like it though." Ace said, chuckling. "He's definitely the father of your daughter's child."

"Maybe." Arcey said. "I think you should focus more on the fact that your wife is now positive for pregnancy.

"Y-yeah." Ace said, thinking. "Holy sh!t."

"Yeah.' Arcey said, laughing. " Now, I can say I'm the grandmother of a Dark type child."

"Yeah." Ace said, nodding. "You can. But, what do you think we should call the child or children?"

"Well." Arcey said, thinking. "If they were a boy, I'd name them Korrin or Geardo. If they were a girl, Destiny or Skyla would be good names."

"Hmm.' Ace said. "Those are pretty good. I'll have to take those into consideration."

"Good." Arcey said. "Now, let's eat. I'm starving."

"Shouldn't we check on our sick patients?" Ace asked.

"Yeah.' Arcey said, nodding. The two of them went over to the bathroom, listening.

"You two girls okay in there?" Ace asked.

"Yeah." They both said, still sounding sick.

"Okay." Ace said. "Me and Arcey are right in the kitchen if you need wither of us."

"Got it." Eon said.

 _With Mewtwo, May, and Sapphire_

"So" the two Cresselia women said, looking at the pink clad psycat. "What is this test for anyway?"

"Well" Mewtwo said, taking notes on a clipboard. "I'm trying to create a 'hybrid' clone of sorts. It'll have your combined DNA and will be able to utilize them."

"What do you mean?" May asked.

"Well" Mewtwo said. "It'll be able to use your major healing capabilities, May, and your more offensive capabilities, Sapphire."

"Oh." Both said, impressed. "Wow."

"Yeah.' Mewtwo said, nodding. "It is. So, are you two ready?"

"Yeah." The two said, holding out their arms.

Mewtwo took a small blood sample from each, putting them into a vial. He put the vial into a machine, which analyzed it and then assimilated it into the cells.

"So" Sapphire asked. "What're you gonna call this clone of ours?"

"Well" Mewtwo said, thinking. "It's gotta be something that applies to it."

"Well" May said. "What does it do?"

"I've got it." Mewtwo said, snapping his fingers. "I'll call the 'clone' Deoxyribo-Altered-Nucleic Acid, or Dana for short."

* * *

woah. WEll, it seems like the Hall of Origin's gonna be fun to be around in a few months XP. So, it seems the four children of destiny are being born soon. What's gonna happen? Find out soon.


	19. More News

Chapter Eighteen: More News

"Having fun?" Yveltal asked Ace as he was relaxing on the couch, a grin on the Destruction God's face. "I guess marriage is more laid back than usual, isn't it?"

"No." Ace said, sighing. "Shadow's at the craving stage. I swear, if she eats anymore chocolate, I'm going to start calling her Chara."

"Oh" Yveltal said. "Looks like someone picked up Pokétale." (A/N: If you don't get this reference, you'll be lost for this next bit of dialogue)

"Yeah." Ace said. "It was really good."

"so" Yveltal said. "What's your view on her then?"

"Depends on your viewpoint." Ace said. "I saw her as a child who lost her best friend that she was trying to defend and out of grief and hatred, sought to avenge him."

"Yeah." Yveltal said. "I can see that. So, are you one of those people who pairs up the characters?"

"Not really." Ace said. "But, I do put her with Frisk."

"Oh" Yveltal said, laughing. "So, you're a sinner?"

"Yep." Ace said. "But, whatever, I don't care. So, how's Xerneas? I haven't seen her in a while."

"She's been good." Yveltal said. "She recovered better than I did from Zygarde."

"That's good." Ace said.

"So" Yveltal said, thinking. "I hear Eon's pregnant too."

"Yeah.' Ace said, nodding. "That was a surprise too."

"Nice." Yveltal said, nodding. "So, have you figured out what they are yet?"

"No.' Ace said, shaking his head. "Arcey somehow convinced me to take them both to their doctors today. As if Shadow having cravings wasn't bad enough, Eon's a vacuum."

"Kind of like you." Yveltal said, grinning.

"There are some things I don't eat together." Ace said, shuddering. "No matter how hungry I am."

"Pickles and ice cream?" Yveltal asked.

"Worse." Ace said. "Try mayo and peanut butter."

"Gross.' Yveltal said, making a face. "Well, I'll leave you to that."

"Right." Ace said. "I'll see you then."

 _With Ace and Shadow—the doctor's office_

"Well, Mrs Hunter" the doctor, a Metagross man in a lab coat, said as he looked at his clipboard. "It seems you're here today for your six month checkup."

"Yes." Shadow said, holding Ace's hand. She was dressed in a green and white striped loose shirt. Her stomach had swelled a good amount, making it obvious she was pregnant.

"Well" the doctor said, gesturing to the table. "Please lie down and allow me to begin the ultrasound."

"Okay.' Shadow said, complying. The doctor took the ultrasound machine and placed it on Shadow's stomach. After a bit, he turned to Shadow.

"Well" he said, looking at Shadow. "Your children are doing very well. They're very healthy."

"W-wait." Ace said, his face going a little paler. "D-did you say ch-children? A-as in more than one?"

"Yes.' The doctor said, smiling. "Didn't your wife tell you? You're going to be a proud father of two beautiful twin girls."

"Surprise.' Shadow said, smiling up at Ace. Ace looked down at Shadow and smiled.

"So" the doctor said. "Have you picked out names for them yet?"

"No." Shadow said. "But, we're working on it."

"Good." The doctor said, nodding. "Well, they're both very healthy. And, as I just said, they are both girls and from what I can tell, they both have Dark auras in some degree, though one is a Pure Dark and one has it in a very small part. While this is strange, since she already has two other types, it's normal for part of your aura to carry over."

"So" Ace asked. "What are the other two types? I know one of them is Psychic, but what could the other one be?"

"Fairy of course." The doctor said, looking at Ace strangely. "Your wife is a Gardevoir after all."

"But" Shadow said. "I'm a Dark type, not a Fairy type."

"But" the doctor said. "Your DNA was altered when you were a child. However, your daughter's is stable and that of an average Gardevoir's."

"Interesting." Ace said. "So, is there anything else to discuss?"

"Not that I can think of." The doctor said. "Your friend, Eon should be out of her appointment soon, so you can wait in the lobby."

"Okay." Ace and Shadow said, leaving the room.

 _With Eon_

"Well, Ms. Multius" the doctor, a Elgyem woman. "Your child is healthy and is developing nicely. She's a pure Fire type, like you."

"It's a girl?" Eon asked. Eon was wearing a loose orange shirt to cover her expanded belly, though hers wasn't to the level of Shadow's (since Eon was only having one kid and all).

"Yes.' The doctor said, nodding. "If you have any questions, you shouldn't hesitate to ask me."

"Okay." Eon said, nodding. "I will."

"Good." He doctor said, smiling. "Now, you are free to go. Call me if there's anything you need."

"Right." Eon said. She got up, leaving the room.

 _With Ace and Shadow—waiting room_

"Twins." Ace said, putting his hand on Shadow's stomach. "We're having twins."

"Yeah." Shadow said, smiling. Suddenly, a sensation hit her.

"Oh" she said "one of them is pushing on my stomach."

Ace felt what was like two hands touching his own.

"I think they're both pushing on you." Ace said, smiling.

"Well" Shadow said, grinning. "You are their father. Maybe they have some sort of attachment to you, even though they haven't seen you at all."

"Yeah." Ace said. "I guess that could be it."

"Hey" Eon said, coming out of the office. "I'm back. Let's go devour a burger joint."

"I'm all for that." Ace said, grinning. "Let's go."

The three friends walked out of the doctor's office, holding hands and laughing.

 _With Mewtwo, May, and Sapphire_

"So" Mewtwo said, looking at the tank in front of him. "How would you say the development of Dana has come along?"

The pre-birth age human body floated in the tank in the fetal position, feeding and breathing tubes connected to her mouth and nose respectively.

"You're the scientist." Sapphire said. "You tell us."

"I need another opinion." Mewtwo said, adjusting his lab coat.

"Well" May said. "She has definitely developed like a human, forming correctly externally."

"But" Sapphire asked. "Will she be like a human?"

"If you're asking about whether she'll need to be fed and all that" Mewtwo said. "Yes. She is a human, just with two sets of DNA not linked by intercourse. She's no less human than you or I. Humanity is determined by genetics, not origin."

"Right.' Sapphire said. "So, when will she be fully developed?"

"In about three months." Mewtwo said. "Around the time Shadow and Eon are due."

"Cool." May said. "So, there's four new children introduced into the Hall."

"Four?" Mewtwo asked.

"Didn't you hear?" Sapphire asked. "Shadow's having twins."

 _In an unknown location_

" **So"** Volcanion said, thinking as he worked on his metal creature. **"They are due soon. I will finish this with them. With Megearna, I will solidify my rule."**

"Di—Di" the mechanical woman, Megearna said.

" **Your daughter will be here soon."** Volcanion said, grinning. **"And, I'll turn her into one of you as well. It's funny how a Carbink princess has fallen so far."**

* * *

So, Ace and Shadow are having twins. Cool. And Mewtwo's clone is coming along nicely, as well as Eon's child. But, what's up with that Megearna? And, did he say Carbink princess? Wonder who that applies to. WEll, we'll find out soon.


	20. Delivery

Chapter Nineteen: Delivery

"This is lovely." Shadow said, laying back on a blanket with Ace, watching the clouds.

"Is that the drugs talking or is it actually working?" Ace said, laughing.

"Well" Shadow said, also laughing. "You sure didn't complain about the drugs earlier."

"Anything that keeps you from eating the couch." Ace said, pulling Shadow close.

"Well" Shadow said, grinning. "It was pretty tasty."

"That's because Mina can't keep her food steady." Ace said, shrugging.

"Yeah." Shadow said. "But, this is still such a lovely day."

"Yeah." Ace said. "I knew you'd like it."

"You sure know me." Shadow said, giggling.

"Well" Ace said, grinning. "In twenty years of knowing you, you'd think I'd have picked up something."

"Yeah." Shadow said, laughing.

Suddenly, Shadow's expression turned to surprised.

"I feel wet." She said, looking down. Ace looked down as well, noticing a small puddle in between Shadow's legs.

"I-Is that…?" Ace asked.

"I think my water broke." Shadow said, her eyes wide.

"Oh, sh!t." Ace said, starting to panic a little. "Wh-what should I do?"

"Well" Shadow said, before she felt a lot of pain. She realized what was happening and her eyes widened.

"Take me to the hospital." Shadow said, panicking herself. "Quickly."

"Right.' Ace said, carefully picking his wife up bridal style. He used Shadow Force, entering the Hall of Origin.

"We're gonna go to the hospital." Ace said, quickly. "Shadow's water broke and she's going into labor."

"Oh my Arceo!" Arcey said, panicking as she held Eon. "So did Eon's. Let's get them there quickly."

"Right." Ace said, opening a Shadow Force portal. "Let's go."

They quickly moved through the portal appearing at the desk of the hospital.

"Can I help you?" the receptionist, an Audino woman asked.

"Their waters broke." Ace said, indicating Eon and Shadow. "And Shadow's going into labor."

"Oh my." The receptionist said, nodding as she called for two doctors. "I'll get two beds immediately."

In about five minutes, doctors came and placed Shadow and Eon on the beds, wheeling them off. Ace and Arcey sat down in the chairs that were near them, nervous.

"Worried?" Arcey asked her surrogate child.

"Ya think?" Ace asked, chuckling. "How about you?"

"Yeah." Arcey said. "It's not every day two of your daughters are giving birth."

"I know." Ace said. "It's not every day your wife gives birth, especially to twins."

"Yeah." Arcey said, chuckling. "You know, it's like it was only yesterday I met seven year old you and Shadow and you and Eon fought each other in the living room. And, it's like it's only yesterday that I brought Eon home from the hospital five days after she was born."

"Yeah." Ace said. "And I feel like I just met Shadow when we were born. But, now they're both having children."

"I know." Arcey said. "I'm only forty one and I'm about to be a grandmother. I was born when my grandfather was three hundred."

"And I'm only twenty one." Ace said. "And, I'm about to be a father to twins."

"Yeah.' Arcey said. "It's amazing. I wonder if they'll be like those kids that visited you back when you went to Alto Mare."

"Huh." Ace said. "Me too. I guess we'll find out. Something about them and them being our kids…"

"Yeah." Arcey said. She yawned, leaning onto Ace. "I'm kinda tired. I was up half the night with Eon, so I'm gonna rest on your shoulder."

"Whatever." Ace said, leaning away from Arcey so he could lay down as well.

 _Twenty hours later_

"Mr. Hunter." The nurse, a Blissey woman, said, coming out of the operating room, waking up Ace and Arcey. "Ms. Multius. Your relatives would like to see you."

"Really?" Ace asked.

"Yes." The nurse said, smiling. "Congratulations. You're a father Mr. Hunter. And, Ms. Multius, you are now a grandmother."

"Where are they?" Ace asked.

"Room 317" the nurse said, pointing down the hall.

"Thanks.' Ace said, him and Arcey heading down the hall to the room.

Inside the room, Shadow and Eon were both holding their children, Shadow singing Ace's lullaby to her children. Eon held hers, hushing her.

"Hey.' Ace said, walking up to his wife.

"Hey." Shadow said, smiling up at Ace. She held up her twin daughters to Ace. "They're beautiful, aren't they?"

"Yeah." Ace said, picking them up and looking at them. One had grey fuzz and the other had black. The grey haired one opened her eyes at Ace, her eyes being a soft cobalt blue. She reached out, her tiny hand grabbing Ace's scarf, feeling it. Ace grinned, chuckling.

"It looks like she likes it." Shadow said, smiling. "Well, she is the Darkrai child."

"Yeah." Ace said.

The Gardevoir infant opened her eyes, a sad look to them. They were blood red and like liquid. She saw Ace and smiled, seeming comforted.

"Aawww." Shadow said, giggling. "She likes you."

"Yeah." Ace said, smiling. "Well, I guess she loves her father.'

"Yeah." Shadow said, laughing.

"How's my girl?" Arcey asked, walking up to her daughter.

"Good." Eon said. "I just had a beautiful daughter."

"I know." Arcey said, smiling. "I'm so proud of you. But, where's N?"

"HE's in Kanto." Eon said. "He was called away on business and I can't reach him."

"Oh." Arcey said. "Well, she looks beautiful."

"Yeah." Eon said, smiling. Her daughter had some orange fuzz and she had fiery orange eyes. She had a toothless grin and she was playing with Eon's hair.

"Have you guys decided names yet?" Arcey asked.

"Well" Ace said. "WE decided to name our Darkrai child Skyla and our Gardevoir child Destiny."

"Mine's name is Flare.' Eon said.

"Those are very nice names." Arcey said, smiling. "You're going to make great parents."

"I hope so." Ace said.

 _With Mewtwo, May, and Sapphire—two days later_

"Well" Mewtwo said. "It's time for us to see how our little Dana is doing."

"Right." The Lunar Twins said, nodding.

Mewtwo checked the incubation tank's status, nodding.

"She's ready." Mewtwo said.

"Cool." Sapphire said, nodding as well.

Mewtwo drained the fluid from the tank, cradling the child in his arms. He handed her to May, who smiled at the child.

"Well, little Dana." May said. "WE're gonna give you a family."

* * *

So, the four have been born. I wonder what will happen next. Will Volcanion attack? Or will this Megearna character attack? find out soon.


	21. Megeana Part One: The Metal Creature

Chapter Twenty: Megearna Part One: The Metal Creature

Ace woke up, alone in his bed. He looked around for Shadow, wondering where she could have gone.

"Oh, that's right." He said. "She's still at the hospital. I've got to bring her, Skyla, and Destiny home today. And Eon and Flare since Arcey's a lazy ass excuse for a god."

Ace got out of bed, stretching. He left the room to go to the hospital.

 _Later_

"So" Ace said, holding Skyla as Shadow held Destiny. "What should we do?"

"I don't know." Shadow said. "We still need a room for the children."

"Yeah." Ace said. "And, it would seem there's another child here. Mewtwo's clone."

"I heard." Shadow said. "Dana, wasn't it?"

"Yeah, I think." Ace said. "She looks like May and Sapphire."

"I saw." Shadow said. "That's impressive though."

"Yeah.' Ace said. "I'm sure all four of our children will be great friends."

"Hopefully" Shadow said. "They won't have to live the lives we do."

"The dangerous ones?" Ace said.

"Yeah.' Shadow said, nodding. "Let's hope they become a nice group and they explore some."

"Like an exploration team?" Ace asked.

"Yeah.' Shadow said. "I think they might like that."

 _Timeskip—eight years later_

"You'll never catch me!" The grey haired girl yelled, laughing as her twin sister chased after her, her best friends aiding her.

The grey haired girl was wearing a black dress and no shoes. She had a red scarf around her neck, which flowed in the breeze. Her grey hair went down to her waist, flowing with her speed, which was quite impressive.

"Oh yes, I will!" Her sister shouted, also laughing.

Her sister was wearing white pants and a white jacket. She had a green shirt and a red, rose petal necklace on. Her black hair went down to her shoulders. Her red eyes were soft, calming even.

"You can't beat us!" her best friend shouted, grinning.

Her best friend wore an orange jacket and white pants with orange stripes. She had a dark orange shirt on and a cream colored fuzzy scarf. Her hair was a fiery orange and went halfway down her back. Her fiery orange eyes were like liquid, but flaming.

"Yeah!" the fourth member of their crew shouted, laughing.

The fourth member wore a yellow shirt underneath a jacket that was sky blue on one half and purple on the other half. Her pants were blue on the right half (her right) and purple on the left. The right side had a pink ribbon that trailed down and around her right leg. The left side had a blue ribbon that traveled down and around her left leg. She wore a pink shoe with blue laces on her right foot and a purple shoe with blue laces on her left foot. Her hair was pink on the right side and blue on the left and went to her shoulders. In the middle of the front of her hair there was a blonde section that was on both sides. Her right eye was a pink color, while her left one was blue.

"Oh yes I can!" the grey haired one shouted, jumping into the shadows.

"Hey!" her twin shouted. "No cheating!"

"Catch me if you can!" she shouted, reappearing behind them.

"Come on, Skyla!" her twin yelled. "That's cheating!"

"We never said no powers." Skyla said, sticking her tongue out at her friends and twin teasingly.

"Well" her twin said, crossing her arms. "If we're playing with powers, then…"

Her twin used her Psychic powers to grab Skyla and pull her up into the air.

"Hey!" Skyla said, crossing her arms. "No fair, Destiny."

"Well" her twin, Destiny, said, giggling. "You did say we could use powers."

"Yeah.' Her best friend said, grinning. "You don't want to be a hypocrite, do ya?"

"Can it, Flare.' Skyla said to her best friend, Flare.

"Guys" the fourth member said. "Let's get to training. Cela's waiting for us."

"Right, Dana." The other three said to the fourth member, Dana.

The four of them quickly ran towards the training room, but Skyla stopped when she noticed something.

"What's this?" she asked, looking at an object that looked like a person.

The object was mostly grey and looked like a woman that wore a grey dress with yellow stripes around it. The dress was combined with gloves that had red circles on the shoulders. She had red eyes (which were closed) and grey hair that looked almost metallic. What looked like bunny ears came off the top of her head (they weren't, but their shape was similar).

"I don't know." Destiny said. "It looks like a person. Maybe we should get dad."

"Good idea." Flare said. "He might know what to do with it."

The metallic looking person began to stir, the five girls jumping back a bit.

"It's alive." Destiny said, amazed.

"This is awesome!" Flare said. "Now we have a cool new robot."

"Are you sure it's a robot?" Dana asked. "She looks human."

"Yeah." Skyla said, thinking. "Maybe we should get dad to take her to the med bay."

"Definitely." Destiny said. "You go get him since you're the fastest with your shadow powers and we'll stay here and guard her."

"Right." Skyla said, nodding as she took off through the shadows.

"What should we call her?" Flare asked.

"M-Meg…" the woman said suddenly. Her voice sounded slightly metallic.

"Meg?" Flare asked.

"Maybe that's her name." Destiny said. "Meg or Megan."

"Megan." Dana said. "That's a nice name."

"Yeah." Destiny said. "IT is. That's what we should call her."

"Definitely." Dana said.

"Woah.' Ace, who had appeared next to them, Skyla with him. "Who's this?"

"We just found her unconscious here." Destiny said. "We think her name is Megan."

"Megan, huh." Ace said. "That's a nice name. Well, we should get her to the med bay."

"Okay." The four girls said. Ace picked up the metallic looking woman, Megan, and carried her to the med bay. Though, the thought was on his mind of who she was and where she came from.

* * *

Who is this metal clad woman? And, what are her goals? Is she friendly, or will Team Lunar Fire have their first real battle? Find out soon.

Okay, so, it may seem weird that i skipped eight years, but i know what i'm doing. There wasn't much important happening then anyway and anything that was will be told in flashback. In fact, the first major event for them tha comes to mind is the prologue of Team Lunar Fire, but i'm not gonna copy that here. If you haven't figured it out yet, i'm building up to the events of Team Lunar Fire.


	22. Megeana Part Two: Megan

Chapter Twenty One: Megearna Part Two: Megan

She blinked her eyes open, her head hurting slightly. She looked around to realize she was in some sort of medical room, monitors displaying her vitals.

" _Where is this?"_ she thought. _"Why am I here?"_

"Morning." Came a voice from beside her.

She quickly turned her towards the voice, seeing five females, four kids and one adult, standing near her.

The adult wore pretty much all green. Her pants were darker than her shirt as well as her shoes. Her hair was as green as grass. Her eyes were large and blue.

"M-morning." She said, looking at the visitors. "Where am I?"

"You're in the med bay." The older woman said. "My students found you and we took you in and healed you up."

"Healed me up?" she asked.

"You had a few injuries." The woman said. "You're lucky these four found you."

"You four found me?" she asked.

"Yep." The four children said.

"What are your names?" she asked.

"Skyla Hunter." The grey haired one said, clenching a fist like an anime pose. "Badass Nightmare."

"I'm Destiny." The black haired one said, smiling. "Psychic Fairy."

"Name's Flare.' The orange haired one said, grinning as she held up a v sign. "Flaming Vengeance."

"I'm Dana." The blonde said, putting a hand on her hip. "Mixed Psychic."

"And, I'm Cela." The adult said, crossing her arms and smiling. "Forest Guardian."

"And together we are" the five of them said, striking poses. "Team Lunar Fire!"

"Worked on those poses ourselves." Skyla said. "Like 'em?"

"Team Lunar Fire?" she asked.

"Yeah." The kids said. "We're an Exploration Team."

"Oh?" she asked. "That's cool. Are you any good?"

"Well" Cela said. "These four aren't old enough to be an official rescue team, so they can't take on Mystery Dungeons, but they're getting there."

"Yeah." Skyla said. "Age is the only thing keeping us from being an even more badass Exploration Team."

"What's the minimum age?" she asked.

"Thirteen." Skyla said. "So, in five years, we'll be an Exploration Team. Then we're gonna take on a Mystery Dungeon and become awesome."

"And unlock our pokéformes." Destiny said.

"That's a high goal." She said, impressed. "Go for it."

"Yeah." Team Lunar Fire said, pumping their fists.

"So, Meg" Cela said, leaning on the bed. "Where are you from?"

"Meg?" she asked.

"Yeah." Cela said. "That's what you said in your sleep, so that's what we decided to call you."

"That's a nice name." she, Meg, said, smiling. "I like it."

"Good." Cela said, also smiling. "So, where are you from?"

"I" Meg said, thinking. "I don't remember."

"Well, that's okay." Cela said. "I'm sure you'll fit right in."

"Okay." Meg said, nodding. "So, where are we?"

"You're in the med bay." Cela said. "Of our place, the Hall of Origins."

"Where the legendaries live?" Meg asked.

"Yeah." Cela said, nodding.

"Cool." Meg said.

"So, Meg" Cela said. "What kind of Pokémon are you?"

"I" Meg said, looking down at her hands. "I don't know. My aura is strange. It's telling me one thing, but something else is distorting it."

"That's fine." Cela said. "You don't have to figure it out quite yet. But, while you're here, do you know how to fight?"

"Yeah." Meg said. "A little. Why?"

"I could use someone to help me train these four." Cela said. "It's hard to work on individual skills when I have to train four individuals simultaneously."

"Okay." Meg said. "That could be fun."

"Great." Cela said, grinning. "Let's go."

"But" Meg said. "I'm still in this bed."

"I think you're okay to get up." Cela said.

"Okay." Meg said. "So, what are we training in?"

"Well" Cela said. "Today, we work on dodging and countering."

"Cool." Meg said. "I can help with those."

"Nice." Cela said. "Well, let's go."

Meg got up out of bed, albeit a little shaky, and walked with Team Lunar Fire to the training room.

Meg gasped in amazement when she looked around the room. It was very spacious and was easily capable of aiding them in their training endeavors.

"The best part is" Cela said, grinning. "It has a faster time in here, so we can get much more training done in a day."

"How much?" Meg asked.

"At its slowest" Cela said, thinking. "About a year's worth."

"Really?" Meg asked. "Why not use it?"

"We do." Cela said. "We don't age in there, but the time goes slower."

"That's handy." Meg said. "Well, let's get going. Who's with me?"

"You take Skyla and Flare." Cela said. "I need to aid Destiny and Dana with their Psychic powers in their dodging and countering."

"Right." Meg said. "Let's do it then."

They divided up, moving a large distance apart from each other.

"Ready?" Meg asked Skyla and Flare.

"Yep." They both said.

"Good." Meg said, smiling. "Now, show me your power."

"Okay." Skyla and Flare said, taking deep breaths and unleashing their power. Meg's eyes widened in surprise.

"That's very impressive.' She said. "You're very powerful for eight year olds."

"Yep.' Skyla and Flare said, grinning. "We're gonna take our parents' place as the most powerful legendaries."

"Oh?" Meg asked. "Your parents are the most powerful legendaries?"

"Yeah." Skyla said, nodding. "But, not for long."

"That's a high goal." Meg said. "I hope that you can achieve it."

"So do we." They said.

"Well" Meg said, getting into a fighting stance. "Before I can gauge your defense, I must first check your offense."

"Okay." Skyla and Flare said. They rushed forward, pulling back their fists with their respective energies.

Meg dodged, kicking Skyla in the stomach, knocking the wind out of her. She got Flare in the chest with her fist. Both girls were flung backwards, hitting the ground.

"Hmm." Meg said, thinking. "You need to work on your offensive skills. You're leaving yourselves open."

"How do you know so much about fighting?" Skyla asked.

"I don't know" Meg said. "It kinda comes by instinct."

"Cool." Skyla said. "I can't wait for my skills to come by instinct."

"Give it time." Meg said. "Now, the real training begins."

* * *

So, Meg is training Team Lunar Fire. I wonder how this will go. Will they become powerful and become an Exploration Team? Find out soon. (unless you've read Team Lunar Fire, in which case you'd already know XP)


	23. Megeana Part Three: Training

Chapter Twenty Two: Megearna Part Three: Training

Skyla and Flare rushed at the Steel Fairy, pulling back for powerful punches, throwing them. To their surprise, Meg caught them, shaking her arms so that she knocked their heads together.

The impact jarred the two, making them a little dizzy. Though, they recovered, Meg had time to land two blows each.

Skyla and flare were both knocked backwards, bouncing twice. Both stood up, more eager to fight than they were hurt.

"You two sure are stubborn." Meg said, amused. "I'm definitely surprised. I'd never have expected most kids your age to not only withstand blows like that, but to come back and take more."

"We told you." Skyla and Flare said, grinning. "We're gonna take our parents' places."

"We'll see.' Meg said. She summoned a ball of Steel and Fairy type energy, dividing it in half and throwing half of it at each child.

Skyla and Flare dodged, rushing forward. Meg was impressed, charging up another burst. However, Skyla jumped into the shadows and Flare disappeared in a Flash of Fire. Meg looked around herself, not seeing either of them.

Suddenly, from above her, she heard a voice.

"Dark Hellfire: Burning Blackness!" the shout came, Meg looking above her.

Skyla and Flare had combined their auras into a ball of power, the two of them throwing it down powerfully.

The ball exploded, darkening the area and heating it up intensely. Meg's Steel typing made her susceptible to the heat, her Fairy typing giving her minimal resistance to the Dark power.

Meg began sweating due to her weakness to the Fire type energy. She put her hand to her head, feeling the sweat pouring off of her. She dropped to her knees, panting heavily.

"How?!" she asked. "How are two kids this powerful? I shouldn't be this overheated from simply this. These kids definitely have skills, I'll give them that."

"Dark Fire Combination Burst Punch!" Flare and Skyla shouted, falling from the air, their weight increasing their speed. They pulled back their fists, summoning power to them and throwing punches, their powers swirling together, making a strange black fire.

Their punches collided with Meg, causing her to cry out in pain as she was struck. When the dust settled, she was unconscious on the ground, still slightly writhing in pain.

"Meg?" Skyla and Flare asked, looking at the woman. "Are you okay?"

"Meg?" the asked again, starting to get worried. They shook her, Meg not responding.

"WE've got to get her to the med bay." Skyla said.

"Right.' Flare said. The two of them picked Meg up, carrying her to the med bay.

Inside the med bay, May and Sapphire stood, surprised.

"What happened to her?" May asked.

"WE overdid it." Skyla said, her tone panicked slightly. "We were training and we must have used too much power. She's hurt bad."

"Let me have her." May said, taking the woman from the two children. She placed her on a bed, using Heal Pulse to try to fix some of her injuries.

"How did you two do this?" Sapphire asked.

"Well" Skyla said, thinking. "We started by regular fighting."

"Then" Flare said "we moved above her and used our Dark Hellfire: Burning Blackness on her. She took a good deal of damage from that."

"Then" Skyla added. "We used our Dark Fire Combination Burst Punch on her. That made her cry out in pain."

"I-Is she gonna die?" both children asked, looking up with sadness in their eyes.

"No." May said, hugging both girls. "She'll be fine. She's just hurt a little. She shouldn't have been in a battle this soon after waking up. I'm surprised she managed to do as much as she did. It must have something to do with her Steel typing."

"Maybe." Sapphire said. "Or, it's that she's tough."

"Either way" May said. "She needs some rest. You can stay here if you want, Skyla and Flare, but, please don't disturb her."

"Okay." The two best friends said.

May and Sapphire left them alone, heading to get lunch.

 _Later_

Meg woke up, blinking her eyes. She felt two things at that moment: one was the pain she'd felt from earlier, but dulled and the other was some weight on her chest. She looked down to see Skyla and Flare resting on top of her, keeping her company.

Meg smiled, pulling both girls into a hug. Both woke up, smiling when they saw she was awake.

"You're awake!" they said, hugging her. Meg winced at this slightly, both girls noticing.

"Oh" they said, backing off. "S-sorry."

"No no.' Meg said, waving a hand. "It's okay. I don't mind hugs."

Meg then pulled Skyla and Flare into a hug once again, them hugging her back.

"Thanks for keeping me company." Meg said, smiling at the two.

"You're welcome." They said.

"So" Meg said. "Do you two want to do something? Not training obviously, but something fun. Just the three of us."

"Sure.' Skyla and Flare said, nodding. "What?"

"I don't know." Meg said. "What is there to do around here?"

"We could go eat." Flare said.

"Okay." Meg said, nodding. "Can I get out of bed?"

"Well" May said, having just come into the room. "You can, but don't do anything strenuous."

"Okay.' Meg said, nodding. "I'll remember that. So, Flare and Skyla, where are some good places to eat?"

"Pizza 'Mon!" both girls exclaimed.

"Alright.' Meg said, laughing. "Pizza 'Mon it is then."

"Yay!" the two children cheered.

"First put on something different." Meg said. "Those clothes smell like training."

"Okay.' Skyla and Flare said, running to their rooms and returning with near-identical clothing to what they were wearing before. The exception was that they were both wearing gloves, each glove having a symbol. (A/N: if you don't know, it's the Team Lunar Fire emblem (the moon and star with the lightning striking it).)

"Nice symbol." Meg said, observing it.

"Thanks." They said. "Cela came up with it. It symbolizes our teamwork and friendship."

"I can see that." Meg said, getting up. "Now, let's go eat."

"Yay!" Skyla and Flare said as they left for the restaurant.

* * *

So, Meg seems to be getting along nicely with Skyla and Flare. That's good. Wonder what'll happen next. Find out soon.


	24. Megearna Part Four: Bonding Time

Chapter Twenty Three: Megearna Part Four: Bonding Time

"So" Meg said to the two legendaries in training as they sat down at their table. "How well would you two say your teamwork is?"

"Well" Flare said, shrugging. "WE're both badasses, but we work really well together."

"I can tell." Meg said, nodding. "You sure gave me a fight."

"Yeah.' Both children said, grinning. "We sure did."

"Yeah." Meg said. "Your parents must be pretty tough to give you guys that muck power when you were born."

"Yeah." Skyla said. "They were the ones that fought Zygarde."

"Really?" Meg asked. "I heard Zygarde was an unstoppable demon. They fought him and they beat him."

"They beat him?!" Meg exclaimed. "But, that can't be. He was supposed to be unstoppable. How did they win?"

"They did something." Flare said. "Her parents anyway. They did something that they never told us about."

"Hmm." Meg said. "Well, I'll have to ask them about it if I see them."

"Yeah." Skyla said as the waiter came over to take their orders.

"The usual for you two." He said, pointing at Skyla and Flare. "But, doubled, tripled, and then doubled again."

"Yeah." Flare said. "Definitely."

"What about you, miss?" he asked Meg.

"I'll take a pepperoni with sausage." Meg said. "Extra sauce."

"Alright." The waiter said. "What about drinks for you three?"

"Poké-Cola." Flare said.

"Dr. Thunderbolt.' Skyla said, grinning.

"I'll take water." Meg said.

"Alright." The waiter said, leaving. He went into the kitchen, leaving the three to themselves.

"What did he mean by all that doubling and tripling." Meg asked.

"We want enough food to fill us up." Flare said, grinning.

"But" Skyla said. "WE might have to stop at a different restaurant if we want to get our fill."

"O-okay." Meg said, looking at the two with confusion. "If you say so."

"WE do." Skyla and Flare said, grinning.

"Here is your food miss.' The waiter said as he came out with Meg's food and all of their drinks.

"Thanks." Meg said.

"Your food will be out shortly." The waiter said to Skyla and Flare.

"Yay!" the two children said, pumping their fists. The waiter nodded, leaving. He returned five minutes later with a large tray, one of several on a cart, each lined with extra-large pizzas with various combinations of pepperoni and sausage. Skyla and Flare licked their lips, rubbing their hands together. Meg looked at the food with amazement.

"Is that all yours?" she asked, surprised at how the two eight year olds were going to eat all of that food.

"Yep." Skyla said, grinning. "Surprised we're so hungry?"

"Yeah." Meg said "To say the least."

"Here's the rest." The waiter said, bringing out a tray filled with a similar amount of food, Meg's jaw dropping.

"How will you eat all that food?" She asked, almost stuttering the words.

"Like this." Skyla and Flare said, taking one of the pizzas and dividing it in half. They began to devour the pizza, somehow making the total consumption of all of the pizza a neat endeavor.

Meg simply looked at them, amazed. Once the two finished on pizza, they began to work on the next, finishing it off and beginning the next. Once they were finished, they drank their drinks, licking their lips.

"Well" Skyla said. "I'm not full yet."

"ME either." Flare said, rubbing her stomach.

"So, Meg said. "You want dessert or something?"

"Sure.' They two children said as Meg began to eat her pizza. "But, you finish first."

"Okay." Meg said, beginning to eat hers. Once she finished, she nodded to the girls, who ordered them some dessert.

Once their dessert came, they began to eat, enjoying it.

"So" Meg asked, Skyla and Flare finishing their desserts. "Where should we go now?"

"To the next pizza place.' Skyla and Flare said.

"Funny how we're heading straight from one pizza place to the next." Meg said, chuckling.

"The food's better here." Flare said. "But, they started putting a limit on how much we can eat at a time."

"I agree." Meg said. "How about we go eat at home though?"

"Sure.' Skyla said. "WE're up for either."

"Good." Meg said. "I'm going to try my hand at making a good meal for training."

"Sweet." Skyla and Flare said, grinning.

The three of them left, heading back to the Hall of Origins. Once they arrived, Cela was waiting for them with Destiny and Dana, her arms crossed.

"Where did you three go?" she asked, her tone not mad, but curious.

"Pizza 'Mon." Skyla said.

"You guys reached your limit again, didn't you?" Cela asked the two.

"Yep." Skyla and Flare said, nodding.

"I expected as much." Cela said, shaking her head, a small grin on her face.

"Yep." Meg said. "It's my first day getting to know them and I already figured out quite a few things about them.

"Well" Cela said, chuckling. "They're very easy to get to know. Kinda like their parents."

"I haven't met them yet." Meg said. "I guess I will soon."

Almost as if on cue, the three members of the Unholy Trinity walked out of the entrance to the Hall of Origins. They noticed Skyla and Flare, walking over to them.

"Mom! Dad!" Skyla and Destiny yelled, running up to Ace and Shadow.

"Mom!" Flare shouted, running up to Eon.

"Hey, guys." Ace said, laughing as he and Shadow hugged their twin daughters. "How have you been?"

"great!" they said, smiling.

"How about you, Flare?" Eon asked.

"Good." Flare said. "Me and Skyla got pizza with Meg."

"Really now?" Eon said, amused. "And, did you beat her this time?"

"No.' Flare said. "WE tied."

"Still a good job." Eon said, grinning.

"I'll win next time." Flare said, holding a fist up in determination.

"No you won't.' Skyla said. "I'm so gonna beat you."

"No, I'll win." Flare said.

"No, me.' Skyla said, her and Flare standing in front of each other, facing off.

"I'll win.' Skyla said, grinning.

"Oh yeah?" Flare asked, also grinning. "Let's settle this in the training room."

"Yeah." Skyla said, the two of them heading into the training room.

"Does this happen often?" Meg asked.

"A lot.' Eon said. "Let's go watch."

"Yeah.' Cela said. "I want to see if their training paid off."

The group headed into the viewing room for the training room, ready to watch the fight between Skyla and Flare.

* * *

ooh, a fight. I wonder who'll win that. Find out soon.


	25. Megeana Part Five: Skyla vs Flare

Chapter Twenty Four: Megearna Part Five: Skyla vs Flare

"You won't win this one, Skyla." Flare said, grinning at her best friend.

"That's what you think." Skyla said, also grinning. Both of them summoned their respective energies, charging at each other.

They pulled back their fists, both of them having charged theirs with their respective energies and adding the effect of Fighting type. Their fists collided in midair, creating a powerful shockwave that erupted sideways.

The two of them were thrown backwards, each landing on their rears. They then jumped up, rushing forward and throwing rapid punches, countering each other blow for blow, pound for pound. But, neither of them could land a single blow, both of them near equal in fighting skill.

Suddenly Skyla landed a blow on Flare's face that sent her flying. Flare hit the ground, bouncing twice.

However, the Eon Princess wasn't down just yet. She stood up, summoning a large amount of fire to her hands, preparing to charge it. She cupped her hands, creating an orb of flames in them. She made the ball as large as a beach ball, grinning as she fired it in beam form at Skyla.

Skyla dodged, charging her own as Flare charged up another one. They fired the beams, the beams colliding in the middle, making a ball of power that continued to grow. The ball then exploded, knocking the two of them backwards.

 _With the others_

"These two are persistent, aren't they?" Meg asked Cela, who was grinning as she watched them fight.

"Oh, very." Cela said, chuckling. "I taught them that myself."

"You make a very good teacher." Meg said.

"Thanks." Cela said. "But, I'm actually surprised Ace picked me to be the leader of Team Lunar Fire."

"What do you mean?" Meg asked.

"Well" Cela said, shrugging. "I'm not the most qualified leader to lead these guys. My sister Dialga has far more battling experience than me, even though I'm stronger than her. Mewtwo's a master of strategy. Deoxys knows all areas of combat and how to utilize them. There's a ton of more qualified candidates to lead Team Lunar Fire."

"Well" Meg said, shrugging. "If I had to guess, it's because you've got what it takes."

"What do you mean?" Cela asked.

"You have the desire to train these children." Meg said. "And, that desire is maing you want to see them become strong. You're pushing them to be the best they can be, but you're doing it in a courteous way. I would say that you are the most qualified person to lead Team Lunar Fire. And, I heard that you even came up with the team's emblem. By the way, I heard that the colors stand for something."

"Yeah." Cela said, holding up her glove, which had the Team Lunar Fire emblem. The emblem was in a blue square. There was an orange fire in the center that had what resembled a moon in the center. The moon was split into a crescent and the larger part. The crescent was pink on its top half and bled into purple on its bottom half. The larger portion of the moon was black and had a green, upside down star inside of it. Two lightning bolts appeared to be striking the moon, both in the same place. The bolt on the right was black on the top and green on the bottom. The bolt on the left was orange on the top, but bled into purple in the middle and then pink on the bottom.

"The star" Cela said, pointing to it. "is a symbol for our friendship and teamwork. The five points represent each one of us. The black side of the moon is a symbol of our protection. The divided crescent is a symbol of our diversity, both in type and personality as well as skillsets. The fire represents our passion and determination. The lightning bolts represent the fact that no matter what, we'll always stick together."

"Wow." Meg said, impressed. "You really thought this out."

"Yeah." Cela said. "I guess I did."

"What do the different colors stand for?" Meg asked.

"Those are the colors of us." Cela said. "The black represents Skyla, the orange Flare, the purple Dana, the pink Destiny, and the green represents me."

"That's very well thought out." Meg said, impressed.

"Thanks." Cela said. "I don't know where I got it from."

"Well" Meg said. "Wherever it was, you sure made a very cool and detailed symbol. I'll bet that symbol's talked about for generations after you establish yourselves as an Exploration Team."

"I hope so." Cela said, smiling. "I'd love for these guys to make it on their own, even independent from me."

"I'm sure they'd want you as their leader anyway." Meg said. "You've taken time to train them and such. I'm sure it'll be that they want you to stay.'

"That would be nice." Cela said. "I'll bet we go on some crazy adventures."

"I bet the same thing." Meg said, laughing. "Ooh, looks like they're picking back up the fight."

 _With Skyla and Flare_

Skyla rushed towards her best friend, a Dark Pulse in her hands. Flare had a Fire Blast in hers, both of them reaching each other, stopping two feet from each other and pushing their hands at each other's (picture the scene from Star Wars Three when Anakin and Obi-Wan do it with the force for a reference). They were both thrown back, the force of the blows astounding.

Flare then rushed forward, using Fire Fang on Skyla, a flaming pair of jaws being summoned in front of her mouth.

The Fangs crunched over Skyla, the Darkrai girl crying out in pain. She then used Crunch on Flare, a Dark pair of jaws crunching on the Flareon girl, who also cried out in pain.

"Well" Skyla said as both of them then collapsed on the ground. "I'd say we tied again."

"Yep." Flare said, extending her hand to Skyla, who took it. "Nice one."

"you too." Skyla said, both of them grinning at each other. "Well, I'm tired."

"Me too." Flare said, nodding as both of them fell asleep, snoring softly.

* * *

WEll, that was interesting. Cool fight. But, I wonder what'll happen next. Find out soon.

On a side note: I'm doing a Q&A for this. It's on this profile and you can see for yourself the rules and such.


	26. Megeana Part Six: Corruption

Chapter Twenty Five: Megearna Part Six: Corruption

"So, Meg" Skyla asked as she, Meg, and Flare were sitting on the living room floor of the Hall of Origins reading comic books. "What should we do today?"

"I'm not sure." Meg said. "We could maybe go see a movie."

"ooh, that sounds like fun." Skyla said. "But, which one?"

"I heard that the Keldeo Legion movie's out.' Meg said. "Wanna go see that one?"

"Yeah!" Skyla and Flare exclaimed. "Let's do it!"

"Alright." Meg said. "I'm gonna tell you guys' parents and we can go."

"Okay." Skyla and Flare said. Meg got up, heading to Ace and Shadow's room, knocking on the door.

"Come in." Came the voice of Ace. Meg walked in to see Ace and Shadow sitting on Ace's bed, Shadow leaning onto Ace and smiling.

"What's up, Meg?" Ace asked.

"Well" Meg said. "Me and Skyla and Flare wanna go see a movie."

"Which one?" Ace asked.

"The Keldeo Legion movie." Meg said.

"Ooh.' Ace said. "I've heard that was out. We've been meaning to go see that. Yeah, go ahead. Have fun."

"Thanks.' Meg said. "WE will."

The Gear Princess then headed to Eon's room, knocking on the door. There was no answer. Meg carefully opened the door, peeking in to see Eon asleep on her bed, her hair in her mouth and drool coming out of her mouth.

"Eon." Meg whispered.

"Y-yeh" Eon mumbled, snoring.

"Can Flare go to see a movie?" Meg asked.

"Sure." Eon said, mumbling.

"Thanks." Meg said, smiling as she walked out.

"Hey, Meg." Ace said as she was walking out. "Eon in there?"

"Yeah." Meg said. "But, she's sleeping."

"Ah." Ace said. "Well, I'll tell her you left when she wakes up.'

"Thanks." Meg said, nodding as she went to get Skyla and Flare.

 _Later_

"That was awesome!" Flare shouted as they exited the theater.

"I know, right.' Skyla said.

"Glad you guys liked it.' Meg said, smiling.

"Thanks for taking us, Meg." Skyla and Flare said, hugging Meg.

"You're welcome, guys.' Meg said, hugging them back. "I liked it too. So, what should we do now?"

"Let's get pizza." Skyla said.

"Yeah!" Flare said, nodding.

"You guys sure love pizza.' Meg said, laughing.

"It's the best." Skyla said, grinning.

"Yep!" Flare said, also grinning.

"Well, then.' Meg said, shrugging. "Pizza Mon?"

"Pizza Mon!" Skyla and Flare shouted, pumping their fists in the air.

"Alright then.' Meg said. "Let's go."

The three of them walked to their favorite pizza place. Once they entered, the head waiter's eyes widened, his lips mouthing the words 'oh no'.

"The usual." Skyla said, grinning as they sat down. The waiter came out with their drinks, setting them down in front of them.

"Thanks.' The three said, nodding at him. He nodded back, retreating back into the kitchen.

"Well" Meg said. "What was your favorite part of the movie?"

"When they stabbed Darkor in the eye." Skyla said. "And Crobatman beat him up."

"And the part where they flashbacked to Crobatman v Supermon." Flare said. "Where Crobatman handed Supermon's ass to him.'

"Yeah." Skyla said. "That was awesome."

"Yeah.' Meg said. "I actually saw that movie. Ace showed it to me."

"He prebought it.' Skyla said. "He wanted it so bad."

"Well" Meg said. "When his favorite superhero beats the ever loving hell out of the most powerful superhero in existence, I guess that's grounds to go a bit crazy."

"Yeah.' Flare said. "I guess you're right."

 _Later_

The three were heading home, ready to do other things.

Suddenly, Meg froze, dropping to her knees.

"Meg?" Skyla and Flare asked, turning to face their friend. "What's wrong?"

"I" Meg said as her eyes flashed from red to black and back again. "I don't know."

Meg then threw her arms and head back, a powerful aura coming off of her. Her skin turned metallic grey and her power increased.

She stood up, powerful Energy entering her hands. She stared at Skyla and Flare, hatred entering her eyes and fear entering theirs.

"Meg?" Skyla asked. "Are you okay?"

Meg said nothing as she stepped closer to them, kicking Flare in the chest.

Skyla stared in shock as her best friend flew backwards and crashed into a post. Skyla ran over to her, shaking the near unconscious Flareon girl.

"Flare.' Skyla said. "Wake up."

Meg walked over to them, summoning her Energy. She raised her hand, preparing to use a Claw move on Skyla.

"Meg.' Skyla said, her voice shaking a little. "Please stop. Why are you doing this?"

Meg said nothing, pausing though. She then resumed, almost hitting Skyla when Skyla wrapped her arms around her waist.

"Please stop this." Skyla said, tears coming down as she held onto her newest friend. "I don't know why you're doing this, but please, stop. Please don't do this.'

Meg paused, giving a grunt of pain as her eyes returned to normal. She looked down at Skyla, realizing what she was going to do had Skyla not stopped her.

"Oh, Skyla.' Meg said, kneeling down and putting her arms around Skyla. "I'm so sorry. I don't know what happened. I just lost control for a second."

Meg then saw Flare, near unconscious.

"Oh no!" Meg said, realizing what she'd done to her. "Flare!"

She picked up the Flareon girl, holding her close.

"I'm so sorry.' Meg said, beginning to shed tears. "I—I"

"It's okay." Flare said, chuckling with a cough. "I know you didn't mean it. That hurt though. You're definitely holding back when we train."

"That's not my power." Meg said, shaking her head, tears flying off when she did so. "That's something else, something not me."

"Don't worry.' Skyla said, both her and Flare wrapping their arms around Meg. "We don't hate you."

"Thanks, guys.' Meg said, sniffling a little as she hugged them both tightly. "That means a lot."

"You're welcome." They both said. "Now, let's get home. We can figure out what to do next there."

"Right.' Meg said, releasing them and standing up. However, Skyla and Flare jumped on her back, laughing as they held on. Meg laughed, carrying them back to the Hall of Origins.

* * *

So, there's a dark side in MEg. I hope it doesn't hamper her life. Well, it's good Skyla and Flare managed to break her out of it. But, will it resurface? Find out soon.


	27. Megeana Part Six: Friendship

Chapter Twenty Six: Megearna Part Seven: Friendship

Meg woke up in her bed, sitting up and stretching. She looked around at the door of her room to see Ace leaning against it. His expression was one of patience, waiting.

"Ace?" Meg asked. "What are you doing?"

"Waiting for you to wake up." Ace said.

"What if I slept naked?" Meg asked.

"I'd be outside the door." Ace said.

"Why are you here?" Meg asked.

"Skyla told me what happened." Ace said. "About when you went evil and kicked Flare into a pole."

"Oh." Meg said, her tone turning to sad as her expression fell. "She did?"

"Yeah.' Ace said, nodding. "She did. Care to talk about it?"

"I" Meg said, thinking, her tone sad. "I don't know what happened. I just felt this strong desire to kill and Skyla and Flare were the first things I saw. I saw Flare get kicked and Skyla latch onto me. Then I returned to normal."

"It's okay." Ace said. "If that's all that happened, it should be fine."

"Please don't hate me.' Meg said. "I don't want to hurt anyone, especially those two."

"I've no room to judge.' Ace said. "I've got my own inner demons to deal with."

"Really?" Meg asked.

"Yeah.' Ace said. "Plus both Skyla and Flare say you're the best. I can't keep those two from you.'

"Thanks.' Meg said, smiling a little. "That means a lot."

"Welcome." Ace said. "Now, I'm gonna get breakfast. You can do whatever.'

"Okay." Meg said. Ace left the room through the shadows.

Meg got up, stretching her limbs a little more. She exited her room and headed to breakfast, Skyla and Flare sitting next to her. She smiled, the two eight year olds scooting closer to her.

"So" Meg said. "What should the three of us do today?"

"Something fun." Skyla said.

"That's a pretty big, vague area." Meg said, laughing. "Got any specific ideas?"

"Nope." Skyla said, laughing. "Just that."

"Well then." Meg said. "How about we head to the arcade?"

"Sounds cool.' Flare said. "And the comic book store."

"Alright.' Skyla said. "And the pizza parlor."

"They're gonna kick us out of there if we eat there too much." Meg said, laughing.

"Yeah." Skyla said. "How about the ice cream parlor then?"

"Sure.' Meg said. "That sounds fun."

"Yes!" Skyla and Flare said, grinning as they pumped their fists.

"Well" Meg said. "Let's finish breakfast first though.'

"Sure.' Skyla and Flare said, nodding.

The two eight year olds finished their food, Meg finishing hers. They then left the Hall, heading to their destinations.

 _Later_

They arrived at the arcade, entering. Skyla ran over to a Blaster 'Mon cabinet, grabbing the twin blasters the system sported. She put in her Poké and started, the digital monsters appearing on the screen.

"Die hell beasts!" Skyla shouted, shooting the monsters. "Taste my big fucking gun!"

"Skyla!" Meg said. "That's no way to talk."

"It is when that's my gun name.' Skyla said, grinning as she pulled a giant gun from the machine (A/N: imagine the BFG 9000 (which is an acronym for Big Fucking Gun) from Doom) and proceeded to decimate the onscreen monsters.

"You're pretty good with that." Meg said, impressed.

"This is my favorite game here." Skyla said, beginning to laugh almost maniacally.

"I can tell.' Meg said, nodding. She walked over to Flare, who was busy playing a dancing game, Pokémon Dance Party.

"You're a good dancer.' Meg said.

"Helps when you're a Flareon with high speed.' Flare said, grinning.

"I'll bet it does." Meg said, nodding. She went over to a racing simulator, curiosity overtaking her. She put in a few Poké and got into the seat that was set up. In a few seconds, she was racing at top speed through the terrain the game set up for her and she was loving it.

"This is great!" Meg said, getting into it. Skyla and Flare, finished with their games, walked over and joined her, racing alongside her. In the end, Meg decimated the two, leaving them in the dust.

"Looks like you found your kind of game.' Skyla said, impressed. "No one's been that good. You even broke the record."

"Wow." Meg said. "That's amazing. I never thought I'd be that good. I guess it's a skill I used to have."

Yeah." Flare said. "So, let's hit the comic book store."

"Alright.' Meg said, walking out the door with her two newest and closest friends.

 _Later_

The three arrived at the comic book store, entering it. Skyla and Flare both dragged Meg to the graphic novel section.

"Check this one out." Flare said. "Crobatman Returns. Epic story."

"Ooh.' Skyla said, pulling one off the shelf. "The Death of Supermon. Loved this one."

"Hey!" Flare said, noticing something on another shelf outside of the graphic novels section. "They've got Calvin and Hobbes!"

"Calvin and Hobbes." Meg said. "That's my favorite newspaper comic. It's such a shame they ended."

"Yeah.' Skyla said, nodding. "But, they were hilarious."

"Totally." Meg said. "They were the funniest comics to exist."

"Yeah." Skyla said. "Let's get 'em."

"Looks like they've got the entire collection here." Flare said.

"Yes!" Skyla said. "Let's get 'em."

"Definitely." Meg said. "There's three volumes, so we can each get one and trade off with them."

"Cool.' Skyla and Flare said. They each got one, purchasing it and carrying it with them to the ice cream store.

"What kinds do you guys want?" Meg asked.

"Dark Psymagic Swirl.' Skyla said. "With a shot of Sitrus Berry flavor."

"Dark Flaming Crunch." Flare said. "With Pomeg Mystery added."

"Okay.' Meg said. "I'll get a Metal Fairy Surprise with an Oran Berry Blast."

They got their ice cream, eating it.

"This is so good!" Skyla said, licking her lips as she ate her ice cream.

"Yeah!" Flare said, doing the same.

"I agree." Meg said, chuckling. "I didn't quite expect it."

"Yeah." Skyla said. "Thanks for the fun day by the way, Meg."

"Yeah." Flare said.

"You're welcome guys." Meg said, smiling at the two of them.

They hugged Meg, Meg hugging back, the Metallic Fairy smiling, thinking how she'd truly never want to hurt either of these two sweet girls.

* * *

So, another normal chapter. That's a good thing. DOn't want tragedy, now do we? What happens to them next? Find out soon.


	28. Megearna Part Eight: Doom

Chapter Twenty Seven: Megearna Part Eight: Doom

"Meg! Meg!" Skyla and Flare shouted, running up to the Gear Princess.

"What's up, you two?" Meg asked the two eight year olds.

"We got this awesome new video game." They said. "And, we want you to help us break it in."

"Alright.' Meg said, nodding. "What game is it?"

"Doom!" They said, laughing evilly.

"That's an old game." Meg said. "That came out when you weren't even born yet."

"Not this version." Skyla said. "This is the newer version."

"They remade it?" Meg asked.

"No.' Skyla said. "They just called this one Doom as well. This is the fourth game."

"Wow." Meg said. "Are you sure your parents will let you play this?"

"My dad's the one that bought it." Skyla said. "He said its awesomeness couldn't easily be contained so he'd let us play it."

"So" Meg said. "Are we co-oping it?"

"Yeah.' Skyla said. "Every five deaths we switch off."

"How about ten" Flare said. "And we start on the hardest difficulty?"

"Deal." Skyla said, her and Flare bumping fists.

"I'm in too." Meg said. "I want to have this fun with you guys as well."

"Alright!" Skyla and Flare said, grinning as they pumped their fists in the air. "Let's rock this game."

They put the disc for the game into the system, powering it on. Once it powered on, the familiar logo popped up, showing them that the game was loaded and ready to go. They pressed the start button, the game bringing them to the file select screen.

"We're file one." Skyla said, hlding the controller with a look of glee.

"WE're gonna storm the gates of hell and blow 'em wide open." Flare said, grinning.

"With our shotgun." Skyla said, chuckling.

"And, our awesome other guns." Flare said, grinning as well.

"Yep." Skyla said, nodding. "Now, here we go."

After the intro cutscene, Skyla began her tromps through the demon infested hallways.

"Die, demon scum!" She almost cackled as she shot demons left and right, her shotgun constantly going off as she blew the heads off of some demons, punched others, and decapitated others still.

"Hey, guys.' Skyla said, a sinister grin on her face. "Guess what I got?"

"What?" Flare asked, grinning sinisterly.

"I got the Great Communicator." Skyla said, laughing.

"Great Communicator?" Meg asked.

"This little puppy.' Skyla said, walking over to a chainsaw. She picked it up, revving it a few times.

"Ooh.' Flare said, grinning. "It's sawing time."

"Wait." Skyla said. "It's got a gas meter. I can only use it so many times."

"Aww.' Flare said. "In the original, you had infinite gas."

"Yep." Skyla said, nodding. "That was such a great game. I slaughtered those demons there."

"Yeah." Flare said. "I got a higher score though."

"I found the BFG first." Skyla said, chuckling.

"Bet I'll get it first here." Flare said, grinning.

"You're on." Skyla said. "Let's do this!"

Skyla then ran out of the room, firing shots and chainsawing demons, essentially making a new definition to the term badass.

"Definitely worth its price." Flare said, both girls practically drooling over the mass slaughter they were invoking cross the surface of Mars.

"You guys are weird." Dana said, coming into the room.

"Well" Skyla said. "We got this awesome game. I could put up with being a little weird.

"Well" Meg said. "Not too weird though."

"Oh, of course not." Skyla said. "But, weird enough to enjoy the hell out of this game. Now, it's time to escort this Baron of Hell back to hell where he belongs."

Skyla jumped for a large bipedal demon with goat's legs. She pulled out her chainsaw, laughing as she sawed it in half, revving her chainsaw for good measure.

"Doomguy's a badass." Skyla said. "And, I'm a badass too."

"Yep." Flare said. "Totally agree with ya. You haven't even died once."

"Doom's my game." Skyla said, grinning. "I don't lose easily to this game."

"Clearly." Meg said, impressed with Skyla's skills.

"This on full difficulty?" Flare asked.

"Should be." Skyla said, grinning. "All the more fun."

"You clearly have either some issues" Cela said. "Or some really Arceodamn good Doom skills. I haven't even seen Ace play this good."

"Well" Skyla said. "I got all my skills from him.'

"Clearly." Cela said. "So, what's your preferred weapon?"

"This puppy.' Skyla said, pulling out a weapon that was so big that they couldn't even see all of it.

"What gun is that?" Cela asked.

"This" Skyla said, charging up a blast from it. The blast, once she released it, devastated the area, every demon around disintegrated. "Is the Big Fucking Gun 9000, or BFG for short."

"The ultimate murder weapon.' Flare said, her and Skyla both laughing evilly.

"Built for destruction.' Skyla said. "And, disintegration."

Skyla and Flare shared a fist bump, Skyla mowing down more enemies. In about ten minutes, Ace and Eon had walked in, watching Skyla play.

"What difficulty is this on?" Ace asked.

"Whatever the highest is.' Skyla said, shotgun rounds going off and chain gun bullets spewing.

"Nice.' Ace said, grinning as he watched his oldest daughter play one of his favorite game franchises.

"You're pretty good." Eon said.

"I've had practice." Skyla said.

"I'll say.' Eon said. "How much?"

"Well" Skyla said. "I've been playing Doom games for a long time."

"Clearly.' Eon said. "That was your first game your dad bought you.

"Yep." Skyla said. "And, once me and Flare mastered that, we moved on."

"To more challenging Doom." Ace said. "She mowed through the entire original trilogy in a week."

"So did Flare." Eon said. "They beat our records."

"I know." Ace said. "That's what's scary. I spent months crafting my skills into what they were and they just destroyed my record. That's pretty good."

"Yep.' Eon said, grinning. "We did good."

"Yep.' Ace said, fist bumping his best friend. "We done good."

"Hells yeah." Eon said. "We gave birth to the two most badass kids in the Hall.'

"And" Ace said. "The most badass Exploration Team ever."

"Yep." Eon said, grinning. "Yeah we did."

* * *

S, they played Doom. Ah, that's a fun game. But, enough about tht. So, what's gonn happen next? Find out soon.


End file.
